


Resurrection

by SLynn



Series: Apocalypse [4]
Category: Heroes (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, F/M, Season 1 up to Fallout
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2007-01-17
Updated: 2007-08-06
Packaged: 2017-12-25 13:51:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 25
Words: 69,960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/953855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SLynn/pseuds/SLynn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It wasn’t their destiny to stop an explosion. It was their destiny to stop him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Another import from LJ. Because of how it was posted there, some of these chapters may contain more than one chapter! I am sorry! This is the follow-up to 'Apocalypse'.

  
**Chapter 1: Harbinger**

_Drip. Drip. Drip._

_The sound drove him down the corridor. The sound of dripping. It didn’t feel natural._

_“Hello?”_

_He stopped in the center of Quincy Market. The entire building was dark. Dark and silent except for the rhythmic drops of falling water._

_Peter stared transfixed at the woman in the center of the room._

_All of the furniture that normally belonged to the place was gone. It was just her. Her long blond hair, lank and wet, was obscuring her face._

_Her mouth barely moving._

_Her eyes were white and fixed on him._

_“Who are you?”_

_Her mouth moved but there was no noise. No words. She wasn’t speaking.._

_The only sound was that of dripping water. She was standing in a pool of it. It was dripping off of her hair and her hands._

_It was filling the room._

_“What do you want?”_

_‘…whispers…’_

_Peter couldn’t move._

_The water surrounding her was expanding, had nearly reached him. He wanted to run. Something about that water…_

_‘...in the woods…whispers…’_

_He could hear her voice, raspy and cold inside his head._

_‘…destiny…hasn’t forgotten…’_

_“What do you mean? Destiny…”_

_‘…he hasn’t forgotten…’_

_…_

Peter awoke with a start.

It was the third night in a row he’d had that exact same dream and he didn’t know what to make of it.

He checked the clock and rubbed his eyes in an effort to rid the images from his head.

It didn’t work.

Peter could still see her there, soaking wet and staring at him; almost accusing him. And he really couldn’t figure if it was just a nightmare or something else; something worse.

Most of his dreams were connected to people he knew and despite the fact that this woman bore a passing resemblance to Claire, it wasn’t Claire. And even though she spoke inside his head like Matt, it definitely wasn’t Matt.

It was plain confusing.

And Peter didn’t have time for it.

Today was going to be long enough without worrying about some nightmare that may not mean anything.

It was Thursday, and Thursday’s were always bad.

Once the colony had migrated to Boston, they’d set up residence in the area surrounding Faneuil Hall. It was the perfect size for them and most of the facilities still worked. Plus Quincy Market and the surrounding shops and hotels made an ideal spot to house and run a new society.

The whole process of relocating had taken six months; they’d been in Boston now for a year and a half total.

After they were all settled elections were held as planned. Jacobs was the clear winner and, much to his surprise, Peter was selected to join the council as well. The third member was a woman Peter knew well by reputation, Marissa Collingsworth. She was the council’s first non-gifted member and unlikely to be the last. She had a solid head on her shoulders and wasn’t prone to rash decisions. Both Peter and Jacobs liked her immensely.

The council basically organized the colony, decided what needed to be done and, occasionally, resolved conflicts; occasionally meaning every Thursday.

Peter hated it.

For the most part what they did seemed important; this part just gave him a headache.

Peter regularly suggested they appoint a mediator for these types of things, but so far he’d been out of luck.

The council had made a lot of small appointments since they’d first started making decisions. Hiro, for instance, had been placed in charge of scouting the general area and making contact with other smaller colonies and townships. He took it very seriously, regularly leaving for weeks at a time, and did an outstanding job.

If there was anything to look forward to today, it was the fact that Hiro would be back from one of those missions.

He knew what that meant to the rest of the colony, to Claire in particular.

Hiro and his scouting parties were the colony’s primary source of information from the outside world. By visiting other places, other sets of people, Hiro was able to keep an ear out for rumors of the Order, of Primatech, of people in general.

Peter dressed in a hurry and made his way across the street to where he knew Claire would be waiting. He wasn’t disappointed.

About four months ago Mohinder had approached Claire with the idea of starting a school. The colony still wasn’t very large, it was still hovering around two hundred members, but there were enough children to warrant attention; enough children and the possibility of more.

Mohinder taught most of the older students while Claire took care of the younger ones. They created the curriculum together and so far it was working out very well. Claire was actually very proud of what they’d accomplished, even if some of the students, Micah in particular, weren’t exactly thrilled.

“Any word yet?” Peter asked as he entered the room.

Claire looked up from her desk and smiled, shaking her head as she did so.

“No. Nothing.”

“Well,” Peter said coming over and pulling up a chair, “it’s still early. He’s not usually back before dawn.”

“True,” Claire said with a laugh. “I was just hoping…”

“I know,” Peter said quietly.

“It’s hard not knowing.”

“I’m sure this time he’ll have something…”

Claire shook her head slightly, not expecting this time to be any different than the last, or the time before that.

Peter reached out tentatively and covered her hands with one of his own giving them a light squeeze.

“It’s been a year and a half,” she nearly choked out. “You know, when he said he needed some time, I thought he meant a month or two. I didn’t think he’d be gone for this long.”

“Claire…”

“Do you think something happened? Maybe they aren’t…”

“I’m sure they’re fine,” Peter said quickly, even if he wasn’t quite sure of how truthful that statement was. “And they’ll be back. You said he promised you, right?”

“Yeah,” Claire said softly. “I just… You know, I knew Matt was mad, but I didn’t think he was so mad that he’d…”

She didn’t finish, too aware of how it sounded. How it would probably sound to Peter.

But Peter only smiled at her, seeing it just the way it was. Claire was worried about her friend, her best friend. Matt and Audrey had been gone a lot longer than anyone thought they would be. Even Jacobs had begun to sound worried, and nothing ever worried that man.

“Good morning,” Mohinder called cheerfully from the doorway, breaking both of their trains of thoughts.

“How’s it going?” Peter asked, quickly standing and moving away from Claire to join him on the other side of the room.

“Pretty much the same as always,” he returned. “My water is out again.”

“I’m not hearing complaints until nine,” Peter shot back at him good-naturedly.

“Well, I’ll be first in line then,” Mohinder said with a smile.

“You and everyone else,” Peter sighed, looking over at Claire one more time and just catching her smile.

“Speaking of everyone being after you,” Mohinder continued. “I saw Jacobs upstairs. He’d asked if I’d seen you yet.”

“Already?”

Mohinder only nodded.

“Alright,” Peter said, “I’d better go find him then.”

But instead of leaving right away, Peter came back over to Claire’s desk.

“What are you doing for lunch today?” he asked her quietly, leaning in towards her.

Claire momentarily froze, first looking up and seeing Mohinder smiling at them, and then back to Peter who looked surprisingly serious.

“I don’t know,” she admitted. “I haven’t exactly thought about it. Probably just peanut butter and carrots with the kids.”

“Can I…”

Claire’s nodded a bit more enthusiastically than she knew she should have, but Peter smiled just the same.

“I’ll see you later,” he said, heading out the door with one last wave at them both.

“Peanut butter and carrots?” Mohinder asked from across the room without looking up from his book.

“I know,” Claire responded, pressing her head to the desk. “I’m an idiot.”

Mohinder only laughed and shook his head.

“Was that a date?” Claire asked as she looked up at him. “I mean, did he just ask me out?”

“Would you like me to go ask him?”

“No,” Claire said quickly. “I just… you know Peter, he talks to you…”

“He talks to you, too.”

“But it’s different. You’re a guy,” Claire answered. “Does he, you know, talk about me?”

“I could pass him a note in gym class and find out.”

“Shut up,” Claire said with a laugh. “And be serious. This is serious.”

“Yes, Claire. There is nothing I take more serious than your love life.”

“I don’t have a love life. And at the rate Peter is going…”

Claire sighed, trailing off into silence.

“Peter likes you, Claire,” Mohinder said. “He does. He just has a lot of things to deal with right now. It doesn’t leave a lot of time for anything else.”

“It’s just so hard to tell with him,” Claire said.

“Well, why don’t you just ask him then?”

“Are you suggesting I pass him a note in gym class?” Claire replied sarcastically.

“No,” Mohinder said, still smiling. “Just ask him.”

“You really think…”

“Yes,” he interrupted. “You should.”

Claire nodded.

It was good advice. It was something she should have done a long time ago, but Mohinder was also right that they’d all been too busy for that kind of thing. There was a lot to deal with.

They’d both settled into a comfortable silence, each working on the day to come, when Lauren entered the room.

“You’re back,” Claire said, happy to see the other woman. “I didn’t think you’d be back so soon.”

“We got back late last night,” Lauren said as Claire got up and gave her a brief hug. “Actually, it was more like early this morning. Hiro was in a hurry.”

Lauren Taylor was one of the few people Hiro had found living in the city on his initial scouting expedition. She was only two years older than Claire, average height with dark hair and light eyes. Lauren didn’t talk much, especially about her time in the city, but Claire liked her. Claire liked just having someone near her own age around again.

“Welcome back, Lauren,” Mohinder said, coming over and joining them as well.

“Thanks,” she said, sitting down and looking around her a bit expectantly.

“So?” Claire asked. “How was the trip?”

“Good,” Lauren returned. “We’ll probably head back out again in a few days, a week at the latest. We made good contacts with the township in Salem.”

“Are they going to join us?”

“No,” she answered, “but they do want to set up trade.”

“What do we have to trade?” Claire asked somewhat skeptically.

“They’ve heard about Micah,” Lauren said with a small smile. “They don’t have any of us in their group. I don’t think they want any of us to be honest. They do have plenty of food, but wouldn’t mind some electricity. Hiro said he’d talk to the council for them, maybe work a deal.”

“He may want to talk to Niki about that first,” Mohinder laughed.

“That’s what D.L. said,” Lauren replied. “He wouldn’t dare say yes or no without her approval.”

The scouting missions usually contained just three or four people. Hiro nearly always led them and Lauren nearly always accompanied him. D.L. and Maggie had gone along this time, but that was rare.

“So,” Claire said hopefully, “did you hear anything new? Any news?”

“No,” she answered. “Most of the same. Stories about the Order. Executions. Nothing we haven’t heard from Franco.”

Claire nodded. It wasn’t good news, but at least it wasn’t worse.

Jon Franco had rejoined the colony six months ago when things had begun to rapidly deteriorate for those labeled abnormalities inside the Order. Jenny Yi, no doubt with Primatech’s help, had rapidly changed how things were done. All prisoners being held were executed. There were forced relocations of all citizens to the capital. Re-education camps, labor camps, death squads; it was horrifying.

The Order was tightening it’s grip and now had the technology and the power to do so.

But so far, they’d left them alone.

The colony was considered a myth inside the Order and it seemed the Jenny Yi was happy with that. It was as if she was purposefully ignoring their existence.

Sort of.

The new wanted list featured Nathan Petrelli right at the top.

It was Nathan, followed by Matt, followed by Claire.

Jenny Yi may not have been actively pursuing them, but she hadn’t forgotten.

“Oh,” Lauren said as she remembered, “we did hear about…”

Lauren stopped as she saw both Claire and Mohinder tense up at the potential news.

“Heard about what?” Claire asked quickly.

“Maybe I should let Hiro tell you.”

“No,” Claire said shaking her head. “If you know something… If you’ve heard…”

Lauren paused, considering it before ultimately deciding to get it over with. There was no point it trying to hide it from her.

“There were a few new arrivals in the township that had made their way up from the Order. They said that the patrols are now killing anyone they capture trying to get out. Killing and… and hanging the bodies up as a kind of warning. Leaving them…”

“That could just be rumor,” Claire said.

“They saw some bodies. They saw it.”

“How many?” Claire asked quietly.

“I’m sure it…”

“How many?” she repeated.

“Two.”

Claire said nothing, but it was easy to see she was already assuming the worst.

“I’m sure it wasn’t them,” Mohinder said gently.

“D.L. is going to go check later today,” Lauren added. “It’ll take him a few days, but…”

“No,” Claire said with a shake of head. “No, he shouldn’t do that. It’s not…”

She didn’t know how to go on. Claire desperately wanted to know the truth, but if they were dead it really wasn’t worth the risk D.L. would be taking to find out.

“Besides,” Claire continued to reason with herself out loud, “if it was him, it’s not like the Order would waste that opportunity. They’d be broadcasting it by now. Everywhere.”

“That’s true,” Mohinder said.

It wasn’t exactly a reassuring thought, but it was true.

“He shouldn’t go,” Claire said, firmly now. “It’s not worth the risk. If it is them, well, it’s not like he can help them and I’m sure it’s not. I’m sure it isn’t.”

Claire got up and went back to her desk, mostly so she could be alone; to have a moment to compose her thoughts.

Matt and Audrey had been gone so long that the only news she expected to hear was bad news. She hadn’t given up hope, not entirely, but each day made it harder and harder to hold on to.

And those the executions sat heavily in her mind.

Even if it wasn’t them, and Claire was certain it wasn’t, it didn’t bode well.

It seemed like a bad omen.  


  
**Chapter 2: Redemption**

After leaving the classroom, Peter made his way upstairs to the main part of the Market to look for Jacobs. He ran into Nathan instead.

“What’s wrong?” Peter asked immediately.

Whether it was because Nathan was never around this early or because Peter was particularly tuned to his older brother’s feelings was hard to say. It was probably a little bit of both.

“Can’t I just stop by and say hello?”

“Do you ever?” Peter asked with as faint smile.

“I should start then,” Nathan answered.

“Seriously though,” Peter continued. “What is it?”

“I wanted to talk to you about these scouting missions.”

“Nathan,” Peter sighed. “I’ve already told you. There’s nothing…”

“I need to do something,” the older man interrupted, “and there is only so much I can do here. All the heavy work is done. The foundation is set. I’d like to help. I’d like to at least have the chance to prove…”

“I know it,” Peter said with a nod. “I do, but it’s not my call. Jacobs put Hiro in charge. It’s up to him, not me. Have you talked to him? He’s supposed to be back…”

“They got back last night,” Nathan provided. “And we both know how that conversation will go. Hiro doesn’t trust me.”

Peter couldn’t argue that. Hardly anyone did trust Nathan. There were moments even Peter doubted him, but those moments were brief. It was hard to get past the things he’d done but Peter felt it was his duty to try.

“I’d like to know I had your support on this,” Nathan said. “I know that nothing I can say… I realize that it’s too late for a lot of things, but I do want to help. And I can if given the chance.”

Peter paused, considering it.

“I’ll talk to Hiro,” Peter finally said. “I can’t guarantee he’ll agree and if he doesn’t want to take you I can’t do anything about that, but I will talk to him.”

“Thank you.”

Peter only nodded, smiling tightly.

“Have you seen Jacobs?” Peter asked, looking around as people began to filter in around them.

“Not yet,” Nathan answered, looking as well. “Have you tried the hall?”

“No, but that’s a good idea. Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it,” Nathan said, patting him on the shoulder as he moved off. “Just put in a good word for me.”

“I’ll do my best,” Peter called after him as he hurried to the place designated the hall.

The hall really wasn’t anything more than a restaurant they used to hold most of their big meetings, but it served it’s purpose. It was just the right size to hold a crowd.

“Jacobs?” Peter said as he entered the room.

“Peter,” the man returned with a faint smile. “I wanted to talk to you.”

“So I’ve been told,” he replied, his smile fading a bit as he neared the older man. “What’s… what’s wrong?”

Jacobs sighed wearing an uncustomary frown.

“Did you hear anything… Did Hiro…”

“No,” Jacobs dismissed. “I haven’t heard anything. That’s… that’s the problem.”

Peter sat down opposite him not understanding what he meant.

“This is about Matt and Audrey,” Peter said, “isn’t it?”

Jacobs nodded slowly.

“How can hearing nothing be bad?” Peter questioned. “I know the Order has limited our information, has found ways to keep Micah out of their systems, but if they’d had caught them they’d tell us. They’d find a way to tell us if only to rub our noses in it.”

“I’m not worried about the Order having them,” Jacobs said quietly.

“What aren’t you telling me?”

“Something I should have told you a long time ago,” Jacobs said with a shake of his head. “Understand that after Beatrice and Albert, after what they did, I was reluctant to trust… I thought it would be better if only I knew. It’s not that I didn’t trust you, I do. I trust you completely, but there are some… It was easier to keep it a secret.”

“Keep what a secret?” Peter asked not liking the direction this seemed to be heading.

“I asked Matt to go and spy on Primatech.”

Peter was too shocked to reply.

“We’ve been too much on the defensive,” Jacobs continued. “We needed to start taking offensive measures. Primatech, the Republic, they’re pulling the strings. They have answers to questions… I thought I was doing the right thing.”

“So that’s where Matt and Audrey went? Did Audrey even know?”

“Of course Audrey knew,” Jacobs answered quickly. “Do you really think he’d drag her off like that without telling her?”

“But he didn’t say anything… He didn’t tell anyone else, not even…”

Peter stopped, shut his eyes and ran a hand across his brow.

“I asked him not to tell anyone,” Jacobs provided. “That’s the point of a secret mission after all.”

“But still,” Peter objected. “You knew he’d be gone this long and you didn’t at least…”

“They were supposed to be back six months ago.”

Again, Peter was shocked past the point of words.

“We agreed that he’d come back in a year,” Jacobs continued to explain. “That a year would be enough time to get down there, find out some basic information, and return again.”

“So why are you just now telling me?”

“When it was time for them to be back,” Jacobs answered, “I thought that a year might not have been long enough after all. That we don’t really know the damage… I was deceiving myself. I didn’t want to think that something had gone wrong. I can’t fool myself any longer.”

“What are you suggesting we do?” Peter asked. “Really, what can we do?”

“We need to be certain,” Jacobs answered. “We need to know what happened to them. If they are still alive. If…”

“I’ll go,” Peter said.

“No,” Jacobs said with a vigorous shake of his head. “You can’t. It would be too suspicious if you left.”

“Then who? Who else can we…”

Peter stopped cold for the third time.

He couldn’t ask anyone to do this. It was madness. He could hardly believe Jacobs had asked Matt in the first place. And that Matt had agreed, had actually agreed to it.

“We need to think about it,” Jacobs said. “Seriously consider it. Who to trust and who to send.”

“How am I going to tell Claire this?” Peter said just under his breath.

“You can’t tell anyone,” Jacobs quickly admonished. “Not even Claire.”

“But…”

“I understand your dilemma and I know if anyone has the right to know it’s her, but until we are certain… We may never be able to tell her anything.”

“I can’t do that.”

“Peter, stop and think about it. Really think. There’s a reason why I haven’t told anyone until now. Why I asked Matt to go and to not tell anyone what he was up to. There are people among us that can’t be trusted.”

“And you think Claire is one of them?”

“Of course I don’t think Claire is one of them,” Jacobs said, almost angry. “But, I think they’ll notice if Claire is suddenly despondent; if she suddenly has given up hope. If it looks too much like she’s gotten an answer.”

Peter shut his eyes tightly and shook his head.

“I’m not going to lie to her.”

“You won’t have to lie,” Jacobs said. “You’ll just be omitting the truth.”

“That is lying.”

“She can’t know, Peter,” Jacobs said firmly.

“I wish you wouldn’t have told me this,” Peter said. “I wish…”

“Me, too.”

****

Ando joined Claire and Mohinder just as the first students began to arrive.

He’d only been teaching with them for the past few weeks at Mohinder’s insistence. Mohinder thought it would be a good idea to have him teach a few classes on Japanese and he had agreed. His classes were very popular, sometimes even attended by the adults in the colony.

Ando was just happy to be doing something productive.

“Did you hear they’re back?” he asked Claire as soon as she had a free moment.

“Yeah,” she answered with a small nod.

“And?” he asked, having not heard anything more than that himself.

“Nothing,” Claire said sadly. “Nothing good at least.”

“And everyone…” he started to ask, stopped short and nodded at her instead before moving away.

Claire had just time enough to spare him one odd glance before the rest of the students arrived. She was in charge of the children under ten or eleven and Mohinder took the rest.

The morning passed quickly and Claire was disappointed when noon came and went with no sign of Peter.

“He’s probably caught up with the council,” Mohinder tried reassuring her. “You know how Thursday’s are.”

Claire nodded and smiled tightly.

“Ando, do you mind watching the class for a few minutes?” she asked.

“What?” the man asked in return.

He hadn’t been paying much attention to her or to anyone else.

“I need to go out real quick,” Claire started to explain but didn’t continue. “Are you alright?”

“Fine,” he said shortly. “You need to leave? I’ll watch the class. No problem.”

“Are you sure?”

“Go,” Ando urged her. “Just don’t take too long. I’m not really good with kids.”

“Oh, you’re great at it and you know it,” Claire said with a smile.

“You’re only saying that so I’ll do it,” he said with an honest laugh.

“Maybe,” Claire laughed in return. “But I really won’t be long. I promise.”

“Take your time,” he said as she rushed out the door.

Claire hurried off, up the stairs and towards the hall used by the council. She was halfway there when she ran into Peter and Hiro talking animatedly.

“You’re asking a lot,” Hiro had just finished saying, shaking his head and looking at the floor as he did so.

“I’m asking you to do this as a favor,” Peter said. “For me. Please, Hiro. You know…”

Peter stopped abruptly as he noticed Claire.

“Hi,” he said quickly. “I was just on my way to see if I wasn’t too late. If you hadn’t already eaten all the peanut butter.”

Claire gave him a wary smile, unable to keep from noticing how uneasy Hiro seemed.

“I’m not interrupting anything, am I?”

“No,” Peter said with a quick shake of his head.

“I was just going,” Hiro said shortly. “Peter, I’ll talk to you later. After I talk with Lauren.”

Peter nodded, a look passed between them, and Hiro was gone.

“I didn’t mean to…”

“No,” Peter cut her off quickly. “It’s not important. I just… It’s not important.”

“So, lunch?” Claire asked.

“Yeah,” Peter said with a much more genuine smile. “Let’s get some lunch.”  


  
**Chapter 3: Known**

Hiro headed straight to Lauren’s room, intent on wasting no time in asking her opinion.

He knew that ultimately the decision was his, that if anything Lauren was only going to defer to whatever he believed, but he still wanted to hear what she had to say on the subject.

She answered on the third knock.

“Sorry if I woke you,” he said as he took in her disheveled appearance.

“I wasn’t sleeping,” she said as she rubbed her eyes.

“Is everything alright?”

She only nodded, opening the door further for him to join her inside.

“We can’t possibly need to go out again so soon,” Lauren said, trying to joke with him as he sat down in the nearest chair.

“No,” Hiro said with a small smile. “I need to ask you something.”

“Ask,” Lauren said as she sat back down on her bed, wrapping the covers around her waist.

“Peter wants us to take Nathan with us on our next mission,” Hiro explained. “Nathan asked him to come to me, to seek permission. He wants to be useful.”

“Oh,” Lauren said sounding surprised and even disappointed.

“You weren’t expecting me…”

“How could I expect you to say that?” Lauren said quickly. “Has he wanted to come with us before?”

“No,” Hiro answered. “Not that I know of at least.”

“Do you think he should come? I mean, I don’t know anything about him really. I’m not sure why you’re asking me this. Maybe you should ask… ask someone else, someone who knew him before.”

“But that is why I am asking you,” Hiro countered. “You don’t know Nathan; you’re not prejudiced against him. You had no contact with the Order. I need an honest opinion.”

“Well,” Lauren said, still sounding doubtful, “he can fly. I’m not going to pretend that wouldn’t be useful.”

“I was thinking our next trip should be up north, up to that colony we’d heard of. The large one in New… New…”

“Hampshire?” Lauren provided.

“Yes,” Hiro said with a smile and a nod. “If he goes with us, it would just be us. I don’t think he has anything bad planned, but in case he does… I don’t like the idea of asking you take this risk.”

“I can take care of myself,” she said somewhat defensively.

Hiro nodded. It was about what he’d expected her to say.

“I’ll talk to Nathan and to Peter,” Hiro said as he made his way back to the door.

Lauren didn’t get up.

“You should get some rest,” he said quite seriously as he opened the door. “You don’t look well.”

“I’m fine,” she assured him, trying to smile. “I’ve just got… I’m fine.”

Hiro just managed to return her smile as he shut the door between them.

Nathan and Peter weren’t the only ones he had to talk to.

****

Just as Peter had expected, it had been a long day.

Hiro had issued his official report, they’d put out as many fires as they could, and he’d had a rather nice, if short, lunch with Claire.

The hardest part of the day had been persuading D.L. not to go and check out the information they’d garnered from the Salem township; in the end, Niki was finally able to do just that, but barely.

Niki had been placed in charge of security, and ultimately that made this kind of mission her decision. Peter wasn’t surprised she decided against it.

“So,” Peter asked Jacobs as soon as Marissa had left. “What are we going to do?”

Jacobs didn’t need to ask what Peter meant by that. He knew.

“I think we’ll have to ask Hiro to go,” Jacobs finally answered. “After he returns from his trip to our neighbors in the north. He could leave for some time without anyone being too suspicious.”

Peter looked down, considering it. Considering how to say what he felt he had to.

“I was thinking of asking Nathan.”

Jacobs couldn’t mask his surprise.

“I’m not sure…”

“He just wants a chance,” Peter interrupted.

“And he’s getting one,” Jacobs said. “Hiro agreed to take him north, didn’t he? Peter, this isn’t something…”

“He’s my brother. I’d know…”

“I don’t think he’s in league with them, Peter. I know Nathan has severed his ties with the Order and with Primatech, but it can’t be him. He’s too well known…”

“So was Matt,” Peter cut in quickly. “There are only three well known faces. Nathan’s, Matt’s and Claire’s.”

“I think there are more than three. They know who you are. Me as well. But Nathan, everyone knows him. It would be too risky.”

“I hate this,” Peter said, rubbing his eyes. “I hate asking anyone to do this. I don’t want to ask Nathan or Hiro or anyone at all.”

“Are you afraid he won’t do it?”

“No, I’m afraid he will. I know he will. We shouldn’t be putting…”

“Guys?”

Both men looked up startled to find Maggie so far into the room with them.

“Sorry,” she said. “Am I interrupting?”

“No,” Jacobs said easily. “Not at all. What can we do for you?”

“I just got a message from Niki,” Maggie began. “She just got off the radio with our western outpost. They’ve spotted someone in the woods.”

The colony had several small outposts set up at varying distances from the colony. They were designed to warn the them should the Order attempt an assault or should another group attempt to move in on them, an event that had already happened once in the past year.

“Did they make contact with them?”

“No,” Maggie said with a shake of her head. “They’d only caught a glimpse of them, but they were definitely headed this way.”

“How far away are they?” Jacobs continued to question.

“A day’s walk.”

“And it was just one person?” Peter asked uneasily.

“Possibly more,” she said. “They only saw one.”

“What does she want to do?”

“She wants to put everyone on alert. I’m not sure why, she just said it left her with a bad feeling.”

“Do it then,” Jacobs urged. “I’m not one to doubt a woman’s intuition. Especially not that woman’s.”

Maggie nodded and turned to go.

“Do you think it could be them?” Peter asked expectantly once he was certain Maggie was gone.

“Maybe,” Jacobs said. “I hope it is. We’ll wait, just in case. Let Hiro go up north as he’d planned later this week. If it’s not them, we’ll know by the time he gets back.”

“Alright.”

****

Claire had always thought that dinner time was the best part of the day. She’d enjoyed it growing up, her family sitting around the table exchanging stories, and she still enjoyed it. If you stuck around long enough, you could see everyone in the colony during dinner time.

Having gotten her food, Claire spotted Micah by himself and went to join him.

“Where are your parents?” she asked as she took a seat across from him.

“Outside,” Micah answered as he picked at his tray. “Fighting.”

“About what?” Claire asked, knowing it really wasn’t her business.

“Dad told Mom about the trade. She’s not really up on the idea of me going.”

Claire nodded.

“What do you want to do?” she asked.

“You know,” he said, putting his fork down, “you’re the first person who has even asked.”

“Yeah, it sucks being a kid.”

“I’m not a kid.”

“Sorry,” Claire said immediately. “I just... No, you’re not a kid. I’m sorry. I just meant that…”

“I know what you meant,” Micah said, graciously letting her off the hook. “I’m not eighteen so technically I’m not an adult.”

Claire nodded, remembering that feeling well.

“So,” she continued, “what do you want to do?”

“I want to go,” Micah answered. “If it’s going to help us here, I don’t see why I shouldn’t go. It’s not like I won’t be coming back, or like I won’t have protection. Mom’s just being paranoid.”

“Niki can be a bit much,” Claire added. “Not that I don’t love your mom.”

Micah laughed but quickly sobered.

“She’s been through a lot,” he said quietly.

“I know.”

“Good,” Peter said coming up to their table, “there’s still room.”

Claire smiled as he, Mohinder and Ando joined them.

“How was the rest of your day?” Claire asked.

“Pretty much the same as any grievance day,” Peter said, managing a smile. “You know, someone’s water is out…”

“It still is,” Mohinder added.

“…another person thinks we should use harvest goats.”

“What?” Claire asked as she and Micah both began to laugh.

“It’s all very strange and confidential,” Peter said, smiling wider now. “But, I think we’re going to do it. Goats next spring.”

Everyone laughed this time except Ando who didn’t seem to be paying attention to anything happening around him.

Claire gave him a funny look before turning to see what was distracting him so much.

“Oh, for goodness sakes,” Claire said. “Just go and talk to her.”

“What?” Ando asked.

Mohinder and Peter turned to look now as well at the table Ando had been watching; the table where Lauren sat alone.

“Do you think…”

Ando stopped talking as he watching Hiro, Nathan and Sullivan sit down at the table with her.

“No,” he said with a shake of his head.

“Why not?” Claire insisted. “You should so totally go. Talk to her. What can that hurt?”

“Yes, Claire,” Mohinder said with a knowing smile. “What could that hurt?”

Claire stopped and blushed, shutting her mouth with an audible snap.

“You should,” Peter urged. “They’re just talking about their next trip. That’s all.”

“And Lauren did stop by the schoolroom this morning,” Mohinder added. “I think she was looking for you.”

Ando seemed to consider it for a moment before giving them a short nod and smile.

“Okay,” he said bracingly. “I’m going.”

“We did the right thing here, didn’t we?” Peter asked as soon as Ando was out of earshot. “I mean, we didn’t like just send him off to the slaughter, right?”

“Oh, no,” Claire said quickly. “Lauren likes him. I mean, with her it’s hard to tell. She’s not talkative or anything, but around him she’s even more quiet than usual which has to mean something. Most girls will talk and talk about anything around a guy they like, but I don’t think she’s like that at all.”

Peter nodded along in agreement with her, the way he normally did. The same could not be said for Micah and Mohinder; the two of them were barely containing their laughter.

“Micah,” Mohinder said as soon as he was able, “why don’t we go and get dessert?”

“Sounds good,” Micah said, standing to go and giving Claire a huge smile.

It only made her turn redder.

“What’s wrong with them?” Peter asked.

“So many things,” Claire said under her breath.

“Huh?”

“Nothing,” she said quickly, shaking her head. “Um, so, do you maybe want to go for a walk or something?”

“Now?”

“Yeah,” Claire said. “If you’re not busy.”

“Now is great,” Peter said with a smile.

“Great,” Claire repeated with a nervous smile of her own.  



	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 4: Trepidation**  
  
Ando approached the table with some trepidation, but between Hiro’s friendly greeting and Lauren’s warm smile, his nerves soon vanished.  
  
“So,” Nathan said, clearing his throat slightly, “how is the school coming along?”  
  
“Very well,” Ando answered with a short nod. “I think Mohinder and Claire have most of the basics covered.”  
  
“You know, Sullivan here was an English major,” Nathan continued. “I’m sure he’d be happy to help.”  
  
“Really?” Ando said, unable to be anything but surprised. “You should talk to Mohinder. He’s always looking for anyone willing to step in and teach a few classes. The students really are great. I know he’d appreciate the offer.”  
  
“Well,” Sullivan stammered, blushing a bit, “I’d like that. I’ll definitely ask. If you think I should.”  
  
Ando nodded and the table grew strangely silent.  
  
“We were just discussing our next trip out,” Hiro said, trying to ease the tension. “Nathan is going to come with Lauren and I.”  
  
Again, no one had anything to say.  
  
“Excuse me,” Lauren said abruptly, standing and going as quickly as she possibly could.  
  
“She’s very quiet,” Nathan said. “Is she always that quiet?”  
  
No one answered.  
  
Instead Hiro and Ando began a rather heated sounding discussion in Japanese that neither Nathan nor Sullivan could follow.   
  
“Fine,” Ando said shortly, standing and leaving in the same direction as Lauren had.  
  
“That was interesting,” Nathan said with a faint smile.  
  
“Sorry,” Hiro replied. “That was rude, but…”  
  
“You don’t have to explain it to me,” Nathan said quickly.  
  
“I’d kind of like to know…” Sullivan started to say, but Nathan just shook his head and he stopped immediately.  
  
“It’s nothing serious,” Hiro explained briefly. “They had a fight. It’s over now.”  
  
“They?” Nathan asked, his interest peaked. “So, are they together?”  
  
“It’s… complicated.”  
  
Nathan just smiled.  
  
“It usually is.”  
  
****  
  
Peter and Claire set off with no particular direction in mind.  
  
“It’s a nice night,” Peter remarked.  
  
“Yeah,” Claire agreed. “Very nice.”  
  
Claire could barely look at him. It was better in the darkness, in the near darkness of the city lit only by the stars, but not much. She knew she was still blushing. Still blushing and working on finding the right words.  
  
“So,” Peter said after a lengthy pause, “we’ve talked about my day. How was yours?”  
  
“Um, not bad. They’re all really great kids. I love working with them. It’s fun and kind of satisfying. I mean, I feel like I’m making a difference.”  
  
“What? You didn’t feel that way before?”  
  
“No,” Claire said with a laugh. “I mean, come on. I spent three years hiding out with other people protecting me. This is like my chance to give something back.”  
  
Peter nodded.  
  
“I sound like a Hallmark card,” Claire said nervously as she looked at her feet.  
  
“No you don’t,” Peter returned quickly. “You sound like someone who cares.”  
  
“Thanks.”  
  
They continued to walk in an easy silence, Claire only slightly surprised when Peter took her hand in his. It filled her with confidence.  
  
“Wow,” Claire said as she’d realized they’d walked to the Common. “I didn’t think we’d wander this far away.”  
  
“It’s not that far,” Peter commented.  
  
“Still,” Claire said, “I just thought we’d walk around the block or something.”  
  
“Do you want to go back?”  
  
“No,” she said with a shake of her head. “This is nice. Quiet. It’s a great spot.”  
  
“Yeah, it is.”  
  
Claire knew that this was it. This was the moment. She had to say something now or else she never would.  
  
She felt his eyes on her, felt her stomach flutter as she turned towards him. Her mind made up. Claire was just going to ask. It was that easy. Ask and get it over with.  
  
Claire turned, met his eyes and found that words were no longer necessary.  
  
Peter made the first move after all.  
  
It was tentative at first, nothing more than the slight brush of his lips on hers, but it soon grew into something more. His hands in her hair. Her arms wrapped around his waist.  
  
Everything she’d been waiting for.  
  
****  
  
Ando found Lauren out in the courtyard sitting alone.  
  
“I wanted to apologize,” he said as he sat down beside her.  
  
“For what?” she asked, looking at her feet. “You told me how you felt. There’s nothing wrong with that.”  
  
“I was mean.”  
  
“You were honest.”  
  
Ando shifted uneasily beside her. Neither able to look one another in the eyes.  
  
“I may not have…” he began. “I may not have been entirely truthful to you. I don’t… I just don’t understand.”  
  
“What?” Lauren asked, finally looking at him. “What don’t you understand?”  
  
Ando didn’t know how to answer.   
  
It was complicated.  
  
Lauren wasn’t an easy person to know. She’d spent three years in this city struggling to survive and it showed. She was timid and quiet at times, but Ando knew she was also strong and brave when she had to be. He’d seen first hand what she could do, how she used her power. And he liked her; he liked her more than he’d ever admit to. Much more because up until a week ago he’d thought that she had been in love with his best friend.  
  
It wasn’t that she’d never spoken to him. It wasn’t even that he’d thought it was possible. Ando just hadn’t thought it was probable.  
  
After all, Hiro was special like she was. Why wouldn’t she prefer him? Why wouldn’t she choose Hiro?  
  
“I’m not like you,” he quietly admitted. “I don’t understand why you would…”  
  
“Do you really think I care about that? Is that what you think of me?”  
  
“No,” Ando said quickly. “I just…”  
  
“You make me smile,” she interrupted. “I like you because you make me smile. You make me smile and you have funny stories, when you tell them, and…”  
  
Lauren trailed off with a shy smile and a shrug.  
  
“I don’t have any better reasons than that,” she said after a pause. “I can’t explain why. I like you and I just wanted the chance…”  
  
“I’d like that,” Ando said. “I’d like that chance as well.”  
  
****  
  
Peter and Claire returned from their walk much later than they’d planned but they didn’t really seem to mind.  
  
They were too happy to care.  
  
Peter walked Claire to her room, kissed her goodnight more than a few times, and reluctantly left already anxious to see her again.  
  
The happiness was short lived.  
  
“Peter,” Niki said as she approached him in the lobby, “I’ve been all over this place looking for you.”  
  
“What’s wrong?”  
  
“Maggie told you about that report from the outpost west of us?”  
  
“Yeah.”  
  
“Okay,” Niki said, taking a deep breath. “We can’t get in touch with them anymore.”  
  
“Are you sure? Maybe they just left the radio…”  
  
“No,” Niki said shaking her head. “They don’t just leave the radio. Ever. Someone is always supposed to be there with it in case we need to reach them. That’s why they have three-man teams.”  
  
“Is it faulty?” Peter suggested.  
  
“Micah is checking the connection,” Niki answered, “but I don’t think that’s the problem. I don’t like this. Something is off. Something is wrong.”  
  
“What do you want to do?”  
  
“I want to take Franco with me and check it out.”  
  
“Niki is that…”  
  
“It’s necessary,” she cut in sharply. “It’s absolutely necessary.”  
  
“Okay,” Peter said, nodding in agreement. “When?”  
  
“Now,” Niki said. “As soon as we can get ready.”  
  
“What about D.L.? Is he going with you, too?”  
  
Niki shook her head.  
  
“If something happens I want him here with Micah.”  
  
“Whoa,” Peter said, taking her by the arm. “Something happens? Niki, how bad do you think this is?”  
  
“Peter, in the six months we’ve had these teams placed, not once have we failed to get a reply. Worst case scenario, it’s the Order. They’ve finally decided to come and get us.”  
  
“You don’t really think…”  
  
“I don’t know,” Niki answered before he’d finished. “We won’t know until we get out there and see for ourselves.”  
  
“Alright,” Peter said. “Just be careful and hurry back.”  
  
Niki gave him a tight smile before turning to go.  
  
Instead of heading off to bed as he’d planned, Peter turned to go as well. Off to find Jacobs and Marissa and let them in on the news.  
  
It was going to be a very long night.  
  
****  
  
 _Drip.  
  
Peter knew the sound by now.  
  
Drip.  
  
This time though, he didn’t walk.  
  
Drip.  
  
He ran. He ran towards the noise, towards the woman he knew would be waiting there. Waiting for him.  
  
Drip.  
  
He stopped at the edge of the water, just as always. And just as always there she stood. In the very center of the room. Sopping wet and waiting for him.  
  
Drip.  
  
‘…whispers…’  
  
“What do you want from me? What are you trying to say?”  
  
‘…whispers in the blood…’  
  
“Are you warning me?”  
  
‘…closer… it’s coming closer each day…’  
  
“What is? What? I don’t…”  
  
‘…destiny…’  
  
“Do you mean…” he began to say but was cut off by the sound of a new voice.  
  
“Help me! Somebody, please!”  
  
Peter froze, looking around him for the source of that voice.  
  
“Please! Where… I need help! Somebody!”  
  
The woman in the center of the room continued to talk, to move her mouth and spill forth her warnings without heed to the interruption. It was as if she couldn’t hear it at all.  
  
“Who…” Peter started to ask, still turning on the spot; searching for the owner of the voice.  
  
…_  
  
Peter sat up, startled out of his dream.  
  
Waiting patiently in the dark.  
  
Listening.  
  
“Somebody help me!”  
  
  
  
 **Chapter 5: Return**  
  
Peter jumped out of bed at the sound of a woman screaming for help.  
  
He could just hear her, just barely. Peter wasn’t entirely sure it wasn’t just in his head, but he had to find out. He had to be certain.  
  
Throwing on a shirt he left his room and began to walk quickly down the hallway.  
  
“Peter,” he heard as footsteps fell in beside him. “Did you hear that? Did you…”  
  
“Yeah,” Peter breathed. “Where do you think it’s coming from?”  
  
“I’m not sure,” Daniel answered.  
  
Daniel Spencer, the only remaining member of the original council, wasn’t as bad of a guy as everyone thought. No one really blamed him for what had gone wrong in New York, he wasn’t to blame, but no one wanted him in a position of power again either.  
  
Still he was helpful, especially in instances like this.  
  
Daniel was gifted with an extraordinary sense of hearing. On a good day he could hear a whispered conversation a mile off.  
  
“I think it’s coming from across the street,” Daniel provided. “At the Market. I was going to go check it out.”  
  
“Let me,’ Peter provided. “Do me a favor and wake up D.L. I may need his help.”  
  
“What if it’s a trap?” Daniel asked, still paranoid.  
  
“It’s… it’s not a trap,” Peter answered. “Someone needs help. Really needs… I’ve got to go.”  
  
“Alright,” Daniel said.   
  
Peter nodded, hurrying off. He was out of the lobby and across the street in less than five minutes.  
  
Racing into the Market, he knew where he needed to be.  
  
“Where is everyone?” he heard cried out in frustration, only making him run faster.  
  
Peter slid to a halt as he watched the woman turning around, still desperately looking for help.  
  
She froze when she saw him. Froze and covered her mouth briefly before running towards him.  
  
“Peter, thank God. I’ve been all over this place, the city, I didn’t know where to look.”  
  
For a moment he didn’t recognize her, not until she was nearly in his arms. She looked so much like…  
  
But it was Audrey.  
  
He couldn’t believe it, was stunned, but it was her. Her hair was longer, a little darker, but she was still the same woman he’d remembered.   
  
It was really Audrey.  
  
“You’ve got to come with me,” she said in a hurry, beginning to pull on his arm; tugging on it for him to follow her. “It’s Matt. He’s…”  
  
Peter finally snapped out of it. Realized this was real, it was happening; it wasn’t a dream.  
  
“He needs help,” Audrey continued, still nearly frantic. “Peter, please. I left him alone. We’ve got…”  
  
“Where is he?” Peter asked.  
  
“Come on,” she said, walking quickly towards the entrance. “It’s not far. I just… I couldn’t…”  
  
“Peter,” D.L. called out, bursting through the door. “What’s going…”  
  
He stopped as well as he saw her, recognized who Peter was with.  
  
“Audrey?” he asked. “What’s wrong? Where’s…”  
  
“There’s no time,” Audrey said, her composure slipping even more. “I’ll explain on the way, alright?”  
  
“Yes,” Peter agreed, right behind her as she continued to head out the door. “That’s fine, just take your time. Telling us, I mean.”  
  
Audrey, a few paces ahead of both men, seemed to be thankful for that. She was walking at a very brisk pace.  
  
“It’s not very far,” she said after a few moments, sounding more like herself. “The car died and I couldn’t wake him. We’ve been driving… It’s been awful. He’s just so…”  
  
D.L. tapped Peter on the arm, catching his eye and silently asked for an explanation.  
  
Peter just shook his head and shrugged.  
  
What was he supposed to say?  
  
“Here,” Audrey said, moving quicker than before and opening the back door of the vehicle. “Matt? I’m back. Are you…”  
  
“I’m awake,” they heard him answer.  
  
Peter and D.L. edged closer to get a better look. It wasn’t good. Despite it being a relatively warm night in late spring, Matt was huddled in a large, thick jacket, complete with a hat pulled over his head. He had his head in his hands, just kind of rocking back and forth in a manner that didn’t bode well.  
  
“I brought Peter and D.L. with me,” Audrey continued, placing a hand on his back.  
  
“Who?”  
  
“Peter and D.L.,” she repeated calmly.  
  
“Janice, I don’t know anyone name Peter or D.L. What are you talking about?”  
  
“Did he just call you Janice?” D.L. asked in disbelief.  
  
“What’s going on?” Peter asked. “What’s happened to him?”  
  
Audrey sighed as she turned and faced them.  
  
“He forgets,” Audrey tried explaining. “He’s been like this for a few months, ever since... Most of the time he gets it right, but sometimes he calls me Janice, sometimes Claire. A few times he’s called me Wendy and I have no idea who that is. I don’t care. I’m just happy it’s not worse. Really, this is nothing.”  
  
“Nothing?” Peter echoed. “Audrey, why can’t I…”  
  
Audrey shook her head at him frantically, her eyes wide.  
  
“Don’t,” she whispered.  
  
“Let’s just get him back,” D.L. suggested, not understanding what was happening here, but willing to wait and find out.  
  
“Good idea,” Audrey agreed, turning back to Matt once more. “Are you ready? Can you stand?”  
  
“Yeah,” he breathed out slowly, sounding more coherent. “I’m sorry, Audrey. I am. I know who Peter is. And D.L. You found them? You found…”  
  
“Yeah,” Audrey said, sounding close to tears. “I did. We’re here. We made it back.”  
  
It took some effort, but the three of them managed to get Matt to the main part of the colony. He was extremely weak, obviously confused and really had no interest in going anywhere. It took all three of them to keep Matt focused on what they were doing and why. It was scary.  
  
As soon as they got him settled into a room Matt fell back to sleep leaving the three of them to talk in the adjacent room.  
  
“What’s going on Audrey?” D.L. asked, deeply concerned. “How’d he get like that?”  
  
“I don’t even know where to begin,” she said, plopping down in the nearest chair and burying her head in her hands.  
  
“Maybe we should wait for Jacobs,” Peter suggested.  
  
“Yeah, I have a few words for him,” Audrey said.  
  
“No,” D.L. said with a shake of his head. “I want to know what’s going on. Now. Who did that to him? Where did you two go?”  
  
Audrey looked up at Peter, guessing the truth that Peter had to know where they’d been and why.  
  
“I’d rather just tell it once,” Audrey said firmly, “and Jacobs is going to want to know too. D.L., could you do me a favor and find him? Bring him here?”  
  
D.L. considered it briefly before nodding, standing and going to do just that. He was still determined to hear this out, even if that meant he had to strong arm his way back into that room. This just didn’t feel right.  
  
“How much do you know?” Audrey asked as soon as he’d left.  
  
“Enough,” Peter sighed. “Enough to guess that Primatech’s been screwing with Matt’s head. What…”  
  
“I was serious about that, Peter. I really don’t want to tell it more than once. Maybe, if we’re lucky, Matt will wake up more like himself and he can tell you some of it himself. I’m just… I’m…”  
  
Audrey covered her face as the tears began to fall.  
  
Peter got up and moved beside her, placed a hand on her shoulder before realizing that wasn’t enough. Hugged her despite the fact that he’d hardly ever even shaken hands with Audrey before.  
  
By the time D.L. returned with Jacobs, Audrey had pulled herself back together. It had taken a lot of effort. She seemed so suddenly fragile.  
  
“Where is he?” Jacobs asked as soon as he entered the room.  
  
“Resting,” Audrey answered, her voice hard.  
  
Jacobs nodded, taking a seat and waiting for her to begin.  
  
“It took about a month to get there,” Audrey said, taking a deep breath as if clearing out her head. “Sometimes we walked, but most of the times we were able to drive. The roads… some were better than others. We got lost, twice, but eventually we made it.”  
  
“Where?” D.L. had to ask.  
  
“Texas,” Audrey replied. “The Republic. Primatech. It’s all the same.”  
  
“Why did you…”  
  
“I asked them to go,” Jacobs answered before he could finish the question.  
  
“Did you know this?” D.L. asked Peter.  
  
Peter only nodded briefly.  
  
D.L. looked down, shaking his head slowly.  
  
“It’s hardly describable,” Audrey continued, seemingly unaware of the tension in the room. “It’s just so normal there. It’s like it never happened. It’s so… preserved. Perverse.”  
  
“What do you mean?” Peter asked.  
  
“I mean,” she said, “that it’s like it never happened. There are only a few large cities, Dallas and Houston, they’ve been renamed… I can’t… I forget what they’re called now, but it’s like life just went on without pause. Without any of this mess. But, it’s not real.”  
  
“Audrey…”  
  
“No,” she said, cutting Peter off, “let me… let me try and explain. I know I’ll never make you understand, you’d have to go to understand, but… It’s all surface. It’s all nice and shiny and new on the surface, but underneath… Matt felt it the first few days we were there. He hadn’t gotten headaches since Claire, well, since she’d saved his life, but he was overwhelmed by it. The paranoia. No one trusts anyone. No one speaks their mind. They all know what’s happened, but they won’t say it. They won’t do anything… They just pretend it’s all fine.”  
  
No one spoke, waiting for her to continue.  
  
“It didn’t take long for them to round us up,” she went on. “A few weeks. We said we’d come in from California. They’re getting a lot of refuges, still, from there. From the west. They don’t turn anyone away and they have these stations. These zones. They didn’t do anything to me, but they affected Matt…”  
  
“Remember the Haitian?”  
  
All three of them looked up, surprised to see Matt standing in the doorway.  
  
“Yeah,” Peter answered.  
  
“That’s what it was like,” Matt continued with a nod. “That’s what the stations were set up to be like. They somehow found a way to mimic his power and amplify it. There were whole sections of the city like that, but primarily it was at those processing stations.”  
  
“Anyway,” Audrey said, “they processed us and designated where we were to live. They ran tests; it took a few days…”  
  
“Did they know then that you were one of us?” Peter asked Matt.  
  
“I think so,” he answered, coming over and sitting beside Audrey. “I’m pretty sure they did. It’s hard to say. I couldn’t… I couldn’t tell what they were thinking so… but I think they did.”  
  
“They knew,” Audrey said with much more confidence. “They knew because they tagged us differently. They wanted us to get comfortable. Relax before…”  
  
“Tagged?” Jacobs asked.  
  
“Before what?” D.L. asked at the same time.  
  
Audrey rolled up her sleeve and held out her arm.  
  
Across her right wrist was a mark that looked a bit like a bar code. It was about half an inch think and an inch long and appeared to be metallic.  
  
Matt showed his as well, only his was across his left wrist.  
  
“At first we thought maybe it didn’t matter which place you got tagged,” Audrey explained, “but the more contact we had with people inside, the more we realized our mistake.”  
  
“You let them…” Peter started to say before realizing his mistake.  
  
“Let them?” Audrey asked angrily. “You think I let them brand me like I was cattle? No. There was no choice. None.”  
  
“I didn’t mean it… I just…”  
  
Peter stopped, pressing his lips together tightly.  
  
“I know,” Audrey said quickly. “It’s just that I used to think all of this was the nightmare. All of this destruction and fear and now I don’t know what to think.”  
  
“What are they for?” Jacobs asked, determined to hear it all.  
  
“The marks are for everything,” Audrey explained. “Your food, your job, your life. It all comes down to that mark. If you don’t have one…”  
  
“They’re like the cards,” D.L. interrupted. “The cards the Order was beginning to issue. Is that right?”  
  
“Yeah,” Audrey agreed. “Just like that, only more permanent. And no excuses about not having one, right? Forgetting it? They have these machines, reads them; they’re encoded some way. They zap your arm and know your life story. There’s no getting around it.”  
  
Matt took her hand and squeezed it tightly.  
  
“I thought we were never going to get away from there.”


	3. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 6: Erased**

Peter stood outside Claire’s door.

Eventually he was going to have to knock, but he hadn’t been able to bring himself to do it yet.

So he paced, and stared, and paced some more.

Peter knew she’d be thrilled to learn that Matt and Audrey were back, and he wanted to be the one to tell her; he just wasn’t so sure how she’d take the rest of the news.

How seeing Matt…

It was so bad. It was so very bad that Peter hadn’t wanted to stay in the same room with him. Audrey had assured him that Matt’s lucid moments were normally longer than what they had witnessed, but Peter couldn’t help but doubt it.

The sound of the door opening roused him from his thoughts and Peter found himself nearly face-to-face with Claire as she emerged from her room.

“Peter,” she said, obviously surprised. “You didn’t stand out here all night did you?”

“No,” he said with a small laugh, “I was coming to get you. To tell you… I’m just not sure how to do it.”

Claire’s face fell, expecting the worst.

“Tell me then,” she said firmly. “Whatever it is, just do it so…”

“It’s not bad,” he quickly assured her. “But it’s not entirely good, either.”

“Okay.”

Peter took a deep breath.

“Audrey and Matt showed up last night.”

“And?” she said hesitantly. “Are they hurt or what? What’s making you use that face?”

“Come on,” he said, turning down the hall and motioning for her to follow.

“Okay, Peter. Now you’re scaring me.”

“I’m sorry,” he said. “It’s just, Matt isn’t well.”

“Isn’t well how?” Claire asked, falling in step beside him. “Banged up I can fix.”

“Not banged up,” Peter returned. “He’s not himself, not all the time. He’s sick. There’s something… I don’t know what’s wrong with him. I’m not sure you can help this time.”

“So, what…”

“Peter,” Mohinder called out, running up to them. “Is it true? Daniel told me you brought in two people last night. Is it Matt and Audrey?”

“Yes,” Peter said. “They’ve been here a few hours…”

“Hours?” Claire interrupted. “And you’re just now getting me?”

“It’s… We had a lot to talk over first.”

Both Mohinder and Claire looked oddly startled.

“Where were they?” Claire asked after a pause.

“I can’t say.”

“Can’t say or won’t?” Claire asked, her eyes narrowing in on him. “Did they tell you?”

“Claire,” Peter said, “we’ll discuss it all once we get there. Not out here in the halls.”

Claire nodded as Peter led them both down to the second floor room Matt and Audrey were located.

Peter knocked lightly on the door once before opening it up and ushering them all inside.

Micah and D.L. were there, sitting with Audrey; otherwise they were alone.

Audrey looked up at them with a weak smile. She looked tired and Micah was holding her hand, rubbing her wrist with an intent look on his face.

“This is crazy,” he said softly. “I mean, it’s all here. Everything.”

“I know,” Audrey sighed. “I know what it does. Can you stop it?”

Micah nodded slowly.

“I think so. It’s like a more advanced version of those tracking devices they’d used before.”

“Tracking devices?” Audrey asked skeptically.

“Yeah,” Micah said. “When they were tagging us. Before all of this… well, before it all changed.”

“I still don’t know…”

“You knew about the Haitian, right?” D.L. asked.

Audrey nodded.

“Matt had missing days,” D.L. continued to explain. “So did Niki. Near as we ever figured they were checking us, tagging and tracking us with tiny lo-jack devices; marks on the neck or back. Just depended I guess. Micah deactivated them.”

“Matt never told me that,” Audrey said.

“I don’t think they’re tracking you with this,” Micah said as he released her arm. “I can probably still short circuit it, but they aren’t following you; not with this at least. It’s just data.”

“Kill it,” Audrey said firmly. “Matt’s too. Mine may not be a tracker, but his could be. They might just not have a reason to track me.”

Micah nodded, taking hold of her wrist once more.

“Where is he?” Claire asked, speaking up for the first time since she’d entered the room.

Audrey hadn’t seemed to notice their arrival until now; she looked up and gave Claire a small smile.

“He’s in the back room,” she said, motioning with her head. “Resting.”

Claire nodded and began to move towards the door.

“Claire,” Audrey called out. “Wait. Did Peter tell you everything? What to expect?”

Claire shook her head before turning to Peter with an inquisitive expression.

“You said he was sick.”

“I didn’t know what to call it,” Peter admitted with a shrug.

“I’m done,” Micah said, letting go of Audrey once more.

“What did you tell her?” Audrey asked. “Any of it? Are you allowed to tell her? To tell them?”

“It’s not a question of allowed or…” Peter started, but no one in the room was buying that.

“Jacobs asked Matt to go to the Republic and find out what he could about Primatech and about their plans,” Audrey said, tired of the deception. “Matt asked me to go with him. I never liked this idea, but I went. And I didn’t say anything to any of you because I understood why it had to be a secret. We were supposed to be back in a year. We were supposed to meet you all back up here, in Boston, as close to a year later as we could manage it. Matt and I were three days away from leaving when they came in and took him. It took me five months to find him and get him out again.”

Audrey stopped and shut her eyes tightly.

“I don’t know what they did to him and he doesn’t either,” she continued. “I hope he never remembers that part. It’s hard enough imagining…”

Audrey stood up, pacing the room and momentarily calming herself.

“There are days, moments, when he can recall it all with perfect clarity. The trip, the colony, what we were doing and why… everything. And then there are times when he can’t tell you his name. It just… I don’t know why. The more worn out he is, the worse it becomes, but other than that there really is no telling.”

“You don’t know what they were doing to him?” Mohinder asked quietly. “How they did this?”

“I have a guess,” Audrey said. “From what we learned while we were there, I think they were trying to figure out how… how he works. I also think they were erasing his memories. Cleaning him out and then they’d planned… I’m not sure what they do after that. I stopped them mid-process so…”

“So it’s like an incomplete wipe,” Micah provided. “Like on a hard drive, with a computer. You stopped them before they’d finished so he’s scrambled. His data, memories, are just full of holes.”

“That sounds about right,” Audrey said, sitting down again.

“He may remember in time,” Mohinder provided. “It sounds like a form of amnesia. It may end up being like it was with…”

Mohinder stopped suddenly, turning to the other man.

“What?” Peter asked.

Mohinder turned back to Audrey, his eyes questioning her.

“Yes,” she nodded. “They did that too.”

“Did what?” Peter asked.

“Wiped your memories,” Audrey told him softly.

“But they were after Peter,” Claire said, confused. “If they had him why…”

“You’re missing a year still, right?” Audrey asked him. “A whole year just…”

“Gone,” he finished with a nod. “I remember everything up until that day with Sylar and then the park about a year later. Yeah.”

“It takes about a year,” Audrey supplied. “They call it the process. They catch one of you, examine your powers, find a way to duplicate them and then wipe your memory. According to the file they had on you, they knew what you were capable of but couldn’t access your powers. They thought it was because you couldn’t access them. They decided to go ahead and clean out your memories because they couldn’t have you knowing this and they couldn’t risk Nathan finding out. If Nathan found out they knew he wouldn’t continue on with the Order.”

“So they just dumped me back in New York?”

“Yes,” Audrey answered. “That and they sent Beatrice and Albert after you. Their job was to help you remember how to use your power, to lure more gifted people up this way since the Order wasn’t catching them quickly enough, and to hand over a few at a time. But you, you were their real assignment.”

“How did you find all this out?” D.L. had to ask.

“It was my job,” Audrey said. “They put me in archives. I had access to all your files. They have hundreds. After awhile I grew comfortable enough to ask some basic questions of the other workers, but a lot of it Matt and I had to piece together. A lot of it is still really unclear.”

“Where was Matt working?” Peter asked.

“Are you kidding?” Audrey returned with a frown. “They wouldn’t trust him with that. Not knowing he was gifted. There aren’t a lot of people like you down there. I don’t know if they are being warned coming in from the west or if maybe there just aren’t a lot of you period, but either way, the ones inside the Republic have no status. They can only get menial jobs, can’t live in certain parts of the city. Matt and I couldn’t be seen in public together, that’s what it’s like. And everyone knows. One of the first laws you learn upon entering the Republic is that this…”

Audrey paused, showing them her mark once more.

“This has to be visible at all times,” she finished.

“Can I see him now?” Claire asked hastily.

She didn’t want to hear anymore of this. Not right now.

Audrey gave her one last weak smile as she nodded. Claire had hardly waited for even that. She was up and across the room in a second without hesitating any longer.

The room was dark, all the curtains drawn tight, but it was still light enough that Claire could make out his silhouette on the bed.

He was on his side, facing away from her, still wearing a jacket and hat even with a few blankets wrapped around him.

Claire was suddenly glad it wasn’t brighter, that the room wasn’t lit up. She wasn’t sure she wanted to see Matt’s face just yet.

Sitting beside him, he stirred but only slightly.

Claire let out of breath of air as she placed her hand on his forehead.

_‘Please be alright. Let me fix it. Whatever it is. Let it be alright. Please. Please.’_

“What are you doing?” Matt asked, taking her hand into his.

“I didn’t think you were awake.”

Matt sat up and gave her an odd look.

“Where…”

“Boston,” she answered. “You and Audrey just got here a few hours ago.”

“Audrey?” he said, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. “I thought… No, I remember now. I know.”

Claire pressed her lips together tightly, fighting back a cry, as she reached out and pulled him to her in a warm hug.

Matt was hesitant at first, but soon wrapped his arms around her as well, squeezing her tight.

_‘Why did you do it? Why did you go? You didn’t have to. You shouldn’t have.’_

He didn’t answer her; just continued to hold on to her like he was afraid she might disappear.

_‘Why didn’t you tell me? You should have at least told me. I had a right to know. I had a right to try and talk you out of it.’_

“You’re mad,” he said quietly. “I knew you would be. I’m sorry, I just… I couldn’t tell you.”

Claire couldn’t answer him, not out loud. The tears were falling too fast. She couldn’t even look at him.

_‘I’m just glad you’re…’_

“Claire?”

She loosened her hold around his neck; her face a mask of confusion as she moved back to meet his eyes.

He only held her gaze for a moment before dropping his own to his lap.

_‘Can you hear me?’_

Nothing.

_‘Matt? Matt?’_

“Matt?”

He met her eyes once more and she knew it before the words left his mouth.

“They took it away.”  



	4. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 7: Help**

It was only Peter and Audrey left waiting.

Claire had been in the other room talking with Matt for well over an hour and Peter had no idea what, if anything, he was supposed to say to Audrey.

Audrey, for her part, looked exhausted; her eyes barely open.

“Should we check…”

“They have a lot to talk about,” Audrey said before he’d finished.

Peter nodded but couldn’t sit still.

A light tap on the door brought Jacobs back into the room with them.

“We have to decide what we’re going to tell everyone,” he said as he sat down.

“Did you talk to Marissa?” Peter asked.

“Yes,” Jacobs sighed. “She’s not happy with me…”

“She’s not the only one,” Audrey interrupted.

“I’m sorry,” Jacobs said. “I really am. I had no idea…”

“No, you don’t,” Audrey said bitterly. “You…”

Audrey stopped mid-rant as the bedroom door opened.

Claire stood in the frame looking furious.

“He told you,” Audrey said, all the anger suddenly gone from her voice.

Claire nodded tersely, shutting the door behind her and coming further into the room.

“Told you what?” Peter asked, confused and concerned.

“Do they know?” she asked Audrey instead of answering him.

“No,” she said shaking her head. “He wanted to tell you first.”

“What’s happened?” Jacobs asked, growing uneasy.

“Yeah,” Peter seconded. “What’s going on?”

Claire sighed and sat down next to Audrey on the couch.

“Claire?” Peter said.

“I’ll tell them.”

The four turned and looked as Matt once more surprised them from the doorway.

“You should be sleeping,” Audrey said gently.

“No,” he objected, sitting down and wrapping his arms around himself in an effort to stay warm. “I need to tell them as much as I can while I can.”

“Matt,” Jacobs began, “if you’re not up to this…”

“No,” he said firmly. “I am. I’m sorry about before. That I left before I’d finished. Sometimes… Sometimes I just can’t… But it’s better now.”

Matt gave Claire a brief smile and she knew that she’d at least done some good. Even if she hadn’t been able to fix him entirely, she’d at least set a few things right.

“So,” Peter began hesitantly. “What was it? What did you need to tell us?”

“A lot,” Matt said evenly. “So much that I’m not sure… Actually, I know where to begin. I’m just… I’m surprised you don’t already know, Peter.”

Peter stopped to consider it and thought he understood. He’d been on the point of asking Audrey earlier why, when he’d been near Matt, he hadn’t heard any of the typical feedback, but her reaction had stopped him. That and he’d assumed that Matt, who had more experience using telepathy than he did, just knew how to block it.

“No,” Peter said shaking his head.

He wasn’t answering Matt; it was disbelief.

“What’s happened?” Jacobs asked, concerned now.

“They couldn’t do that,” Peter continued. “I mean, how could they?”

“How could they what?” Jacobs asked.

“They… I don’t know how,” Matt began. “I wasn’t awake for it, or if I was I don’t remember. But, somehow, they took away my ability. I can’t… I can’t hear it anymore. None of it.”

“That can’t be possible,” Jacobs said quietly.

“After what I’ve seen in the past few years,” Matt returned, “I think just about anything is possible.”

“But how?” Peter still questioned. “It’s a part of you. They can’t just take it away…”

“Peter, if I knew I’d tell you,” Matt said, beginning to lose his patience. “I don’t know so… it’s not the point. It’s not what’s important…”

“Not important?” Peter asked.

“That’s what I said,” Claire added.

“Please,” Matt said sternly. “We’ve got a real problem here.”

The room got quiet.

Matt stopped and scrubbed his hands across his face, a well practiced sign of frustration.

“Who knows that we were in Texas?” he asked Jacobs.

“Outside of this room?” Jacobs returned. “D.L., Micah, Mohinder and Marissa. That’s it.”

“Marissa?” Matt asked, not sure if he should know that name or not.

“She’s the third member of the council,” Peter answered. “You’ve never met.”

“And you trust her?” Matt asked.

“Yes,” Jacobs nodded. “She’s dependable. Why? What’s wrong?”

“From what we saw,” Audrey picked up, “from what I saw, we think that there is someone here feeding information back to Primatech.”

“How do you figure?” Jacobs asked, surprised.

“The files,” Audrey answered. “They were recent. The information in them was new. Newer, at least.”

“That doesn’t mean…”

“Peter,” Audrey interrupted, “they had monthly updates on your progress. On how you were beginning to use your power again.”

“How long has this been happening?” Jacobs asked.

“How long has this colony been in existence?” Audrey returned.

“Couldn’t it have just been Beatrice and Albert?” Peter asked.

“Yes, well,” Matt said, joining the conversation again. “We thought that too. That, along with helping you sort out your powers, they probably were keeping tabs on everyone. But there were things in there they couldn’t have known. I mean, they didn’t know that D.L. could phase two people, did they?”

“There were things in there we couldn’t have known,” Audrey added. “Like Hiro stopping time for five now instead of four. That’s new, right?”

“Really new,” Claire said, her eyes gone wide. “He’s only been trying that for a few months. He’s only done it twice.”

“Do you know who it is?” Jacobs asked. “Any idea who it could be?”

“My guess is that it’s someone like…” Matt stopped. He’d started to say ‘us’ but realized that didn’t actually apply to him anymore. “Someone with a power.”

“But if they know we’re here why not just come and get us?” Claire asked.

“I don’t think they have the resources,” Audrey answered. “In a lot of ways they’re not much better than the Order with controlling the…well…”

“Freaks?” Claire provided with a slight smile.

“I wish you’d stop saying that,” Matt said shaking his head.

“You have to own it,” Claire returned with a smile.

_‘Not anymore I don’t.’_

Peter looked up in surprise at having heard Matt’s voice, albeit faintly, in his own head.

“The situation,” Audrey continued, undisturbed by the banter. “They only have a handful of you among them and they’re kept in check largely by the marks and by fear. From what I saw, the equipment they use, although it duplicates the power, it’s not as effective. It takes longer. I mean, the whole process of wiping a brain and taking a power takes about a year, and they can only do a few at a time. That’s why they let Matt in, let him think they didn’t know who he was and let him get comfortable. It was the only thing they could do. They already had two people in the process.”

“Well,” Jacobs said. “Well. I don’t know… Matt, I’m not going to lie. We could really use your power right about now. Find out who…”

“There might be another way,” Matt interrupted. “If Beatrice and Albert were spying beforehand, Primatech would have to have sent someone else up here to spy after. Who’s new to the colony?”

“You want the long list or the really long list?” Claire asked. “Matt, it’s been a year and a half. We’ve had people in and out of here…”

“Off the long list then,” Matt interrupted, “who has an ability? That has to at least cut it in half.”

“More than half,” Peter answered. “Only about dozen, maybe less. We’re keeping records now.”

“Okay,” Audrey nodded. “That should help.”

“In these files,” Jacobs questioned, “who were they specifically looking at? We might be able to narrow it down that way. See who they were most interested in, who is being watched the closest.”

“Yeah,” Audrey nodded. “Let’s see. Well, it’s pretty obvious they’re after Claire. She and Peter are right at the top of their wish list; their files were constantly being updated. I told you about Hiro. Niki was there as well. Someone named Maggie had a pretty extensive file.”

“Maggie Jenson,” Jacobs said with a nod. “She’s been helping Niki with security.”

“And Micah,” Audrey continued. “There seems to be a lot of interest in him. In what he can do.”

“I’ll check the records,” Jacobs said a bit subdued, “but…”

“Who?” Peter asked quickly. “Who do you have in mind?”

“I don’t want to accuse anyone,” Jacobs said firmly. “But, really, only a few people know that Hiro is stopping time for five people now. Very few people, and of them, the only one new…”

“It can’t be Lauren,” Claire interrupted. “It can’t. She’s…”

Claire stopped, not sure how to defend her.

“She is close to Hiro,” Peter said gently. “And she helped him test it. She’s been at council meetings, at the school…”

“She was also alone in this city for three years,” Claire argued.

“No,” Jacobs countered, “she says she was.”

Claire just stopped herself from rolling her eyes, content instead to look the other way.

“Listen,” Matt said, trying to defuse the situation some, “I’m not trying to start a witch hunt here, I just think we need to be careful. To be on the watch for this. For anyone acting suspicious.”

“Okay,” Peter agreed. “But what about you? What can we do…”

“There’s nothing you can do,” Matt said immediately, cutting him off.

“Mohinder might be able to help,” Peter suggested anyway.

“He doesn’t want help,” Claire said harshly.

“Claire,” Audrey said quietly, an almost plea.

“I’m not having this argument with you now,” Matt said shaking his head.

“Well,” Claire shot back, “we’re going to have to do it sometime or other.”

“What’s this about?” Peter asked, feeling lost.

“I’m not sure it’s our business,” Jacobs answered, looking from Matt to Claire.

“Actually,” Audrey said, getting to her feet, “it’s Matt’s business.”

Claire looked as if she was going to argue that point, but held her tongue instead.

“I need something to eat,” Audrey continued. “Where can I go…”

“I’ll show you,” Jacobs said, standing and moving towards the door.

Neither Claire nor Peter made a move to follow.

“Peter,” Jacobs said, “why don’t you come with us? We have a lot to discuss and we’ll need to bring Marissa up to speed.”

Peter nodded, but was reluctant to go. Claire gave him a brief smile and he was decided.

“I’ll see you both later,” he said, rising as well.

Claire and Matt both watched him go, and once alone the silence was nearly unbearable.

“I just don’t understand,” Claire said sadly after a minute or two.

“What’s there to understand?” Matt questioned. “It’s gone and there’s nothing…”

“That’s… that’s not true,” Claire said shaking her head. “You know there’s at least something, at least a chance. Mohinder probably could figure it out if you wanted him to, but you don’t. That’s what this is about. You don’t want him to help you.”

“I don’t need help,” Matt said flatly. “This isn’t something…”

“They took away a part of you, Matt,” Claire argued. “Why aren’t you more upset about this? Why aren’t you mad? I would be…”

“Now you’re lying,” Matt interrupted. “Because I know you wouldn’t be either. Claire, you are just like me. If you had the choice…”

“I’m sorry,” Claire said, “were you given a choice? Did they come up to you and say, ‘Hey Matt, want us to take those voices out of your head for you? It’s completely your call.’?”

“Claire, stop it.”

“No,” she practically spat out, “I won’t. I won’t stop it because I can’t understand why you’re okay with this. That you’re happy…”

“You think I’m happy?” Matt said, getting to his feet and sounding irate. “You think I’m happy that I have huge gapping holes in my life, in my memory? That I had no control over what happened to me, what’s been happening to me? Do you think…”

“I think you’re happy you don’t have to be apart of this anymore,” Claire fired back at him. “I think you’re relieved.”

“So what if I am?” Matt said quickly causing her to go completely silent.

Matt looked down, somewhat ashamed with himself.

“Ever since this whole thing began I’ve had no control over my own life,” Matt started quietly. “I never wanted this. I never… I just wanted to do my job. I wanted to live my life, to help people. And yes, at first, I thought this thing I could do was a great. It helped me, but the cost… it’s too much. I can’t keep doing this.”

“So you’re quitting?” Claire asked. “Just like that? They win.”

“No,” Matt said shaking his head. “I’m not… I’ll do everything I can to help. Everything…”

“But trying to regain your power?” Claire asked.

Matt sat back down again and shrugged.

“I can’t do it anymore, Claire,” he said quietly, refusing to meet her eyes. “You can be mad at me, hate me, it’s not going to change my mind. I’m not cut out for this. I never was. You know, I know that everyone thinks this is destiny, but destiny got the wrong guy. I’ve always been…”

“You’re not a failure,” Claire whispered.

“Well,” he said with a faint laugh, “I’m not exactly a screaming success either.”

“Matt…”

“Claire, it’s just better this way,” he continued, not listening. “I just make one mistake after another. People only listened to me because of what I could do; now they won’t have a reason to.”

“I can’t believe you’re saying this,” she said. “I can’t believe you’re quitting. Just like that? Just…”

“Claire,” Matt said, getting up and moving past her as quickly as he could, “I’m really not feeling well. I think I need to lie down again.”

“Matt?”

“I’ll see you later,” he continued as he headed for the bedroom door, still not looking at her.

Claire watched dumbstruck as he left the room without another word or explanation. She didn’t understand, she couldn’t understand. She knew Matt had a habit, a very bad habit, of blaming himself when things went wrong, but this was too much.

For the first time Claire didn’t know how to help him.  



	5. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 8: Guests**

“He’s impossible.”

Audrey and Peter looked up surprised by Claire’s sudden outburst as she joined them at the table.

“Really,” she continued, unfazed by their reactions, “what is that about? He doesn’t want it back? He really doesn’t want it back?”

“Claire,” Peter said, reaching out for her hand and speaking in a low voice, “we’re trying to keep that quiet. We don’t want…”

“No, no, no,” Claire said shaking her head and pulling back her hand. “Don’t think you can shush me. I haven’t even started with you yet.”

“Why are you mad at me?” Peter asked, now really surprised. “Claire, I didn’t…”

“You knew where they’d gone,” she quickly interrupted. “You knew. You knew I was worried sick and all this time…”

“It wasn’t all this time,” Peter argued. “It was yesterday. I only found out yesterday.”

“And you didn’t tell me,” Claire finished.

“I wanted to tell you, but…”

“Forget it,” Claire said dismissively. “I’m mad, I’m just not as mad at you as I am with Jacobs and Matt. I mean, really? What was he thinking?”

“Claire,” Peter said again, “you have got to keep it down.”

Claire seemed to realize that people were starting to stare and nodded in agreement.

“I’m sorry,” she said in a much calmer voice, “but Audrey, why? Why is he acting like this? He’s just giving up and that’s not him.”

“It hasn’t been an easy,” Audrey tried explaining.

“Well, no,” Claire agreed, “none of it has. But this, this is just… quitting. It’s like he’s just defeated and I…”

“Claire,” Audrey sighed, “he doesn’t remember.”

“I know there are gaps…”

“No,” Audrey interrupted, “it’s not just that he’s lost time, it’s almost like he’s lost who he is, who he’s become. The past few years are drifting in and out of his head, like they got to those memories first, but he’s still got a good grasp on who he was before all of this began. I mean, think about that. If you took the person you were five years ago and plopped them down into all of this, wouldn’t you be a bit freaked out? A little hesitant?”

“But it’s like he’s a completely different person,” Claire argued. “That’s not hesitation, that’s doubt. That’s not the same…”

“He’s not the same,” Audrey said firmly. “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell all of you.”

Claire let out a grunt of frustration, dropping her head into his hands. First Peter, now Matt; it was enough to make Claire wish someone would wipe her memory so she wouldn’t have to deal with all of this again.

“Do you think he will remember?” Peter asked Audrey now. “Has it gotten any better for him? Any clearer?”

“Like I said, there are days he’s fine,” she answered. “But then there are days where… It’s hard to say.”

“And his power is just gone?”

“As far as I know,” Audrey said, not sure she understood the tone in which he’d asked the question. “Why?”

“Well,” Peter said, “back in the room when we were all together, I thought I heard something.”

“Like what?” Claire asked.

“Like, Matt. I heard Matt in my head.”

“Huh,” Audrey said, looking perplexed. “I know he wouldn’t lie about that, but he really hasn’t… If you picked it up it must still be there… maybe like the memories it was only partially erased?”

“Or he just doesn’t want to do it anymore,” Claire had to suggest.

“Not wanting to and not being able to…”

“Are the same,” Claire finished before the other woman could. “For him they are. He was tuning out thoughts not long before he’d left. Maybe he’s just tuning them all out subconsciously.”

“I don’t know,” Audrey said skeptically.

“It’s possible,” Peter admitted. “Most of the problems I’ve had were like that. I didn’t believe I could do it so I couldn’t.”

“Yeah well,” Audrey said with a false laugh, “if either one of you would like to approach him with that idea, you go right ahead. Because, not me. No thank you.”

“No,” Claire said shaking her head. “That probably wouldn’t go over well. Not as down as he is on himself. He’d just see it as one more thing he’s done wrong.”

“We have to do something,” Peter said. “Jacobs is right, we need Matt and not just because he can read minds.”

For a moment, no one knew what else to say.

“So exactly what are we supposed to say if someone asks where we’ve been?” Audrey had to ask.

“I don’t know,” Peter admitted. “Just say you were away. Lie. Make something up. Anything, as long as it’s consistent.”

“And if people ask why Matt can’t remember where we are or who he’s talking to or…”

“Anyone that really knows Matt is going to know the truth,” Peter assured her. “All of us. It’s just everyone else I’m worried about.”

“Does that include your brother?”

“I’ll talk to Nathan,” Peter said. “I’ll tell him only what he has to know and no more.”

“Well, if you can, keep him away from Matt.”

Peter gave her an odd stare.

“I’m just saying,” Audrey continued. “He doesn’t always remember much but he hasn’t forgotten how much he hates that man. It won’t be pretty.”

“No,” Peter said, “I agree. They probably shouldn’t be near one another if we can help it.”

“So, now what?” Claire asked.

“I don’t know what the two of you have planned,” Audrey said, “but I need a nap. I haven’t slept in days. I’m just going to go lie down for awhile.”

Audrey said a quick goodbye to the both of them and for a moment it was awkward.

“I really am sorry,” Peter began.

“No,” Claire said with a brisk nod, “I understand. I know that you wouldn’t intentionally keep something that big from me. You had your reasons and they were good ones.”

“I still feel bad,” Peter said, reaching out and taking hold of her hands. “I do. Especially considering what’s happened.”

“It’s not your fault,” she said with sincerity.

He smiled, bringing one of her hands up to his mouth and kissing it softly.

“See,” she smiled, “now I can’t even be a little mad at you.”

****

By midday nearly everyone in the colony knew about Matt and Audrey’s return. The curiosity wasn’t as intense as it could have been had either of them better known amongst the members, but it was still present.

Peter personally told Hiro, Ando and Nathan exactly what had happened and where they’d been, ensuring that it went no further; not to Lauren, not to Sullivan, to no one but their original group.

It was a busy day.

Besides that, they hadn’t heard from Niki or Franco yet, and that was worrisome. They continued to have regular contact with the other three outposts, one to the north and the other two to the south, but nothing from the west.

“What do you think?” Peter asked Maggie, the second-in-charge of security issues within the colony.

“Give it another day,” Maggie said a bit uneasily. “They could have just been delayed. It’s a good day’s drive and between the roads or the cars, who knows. I don’t think we need to worry just yet.”

Peter nodded.

“Daniel told me your friends got back last night,” Maggie said as the two of them shut down the meeting hall for the day. “That’s great.”

“Yeah,” Peter said with a faint smile, “it’s nice to have them back.”

“They must have been tired,” she said with a laugh. “I haven’t seen them all day.”

“Did you get a chance to meet them in New York?”

“Actually, I don’t think so,” Maggie answered. “Not really. So much was happening just then.”

Peter nodded; Maggie had practically run the colony after Beatrice and Albert’s desertion.

Shutting off the last of the lights, the two of them made their way to the door.

“We’d better hurry or there won’t be any food left,” Peter joked as he walked with her down the corridor.

“I’ll catch up with you,” Maggie called, turning to head the other direction. “I just want to check the radios one more time. Just in case.”

“Alright,” Peter said with a smile. “See you later.”

Maggie retreated down the hallway without looking back. Looking back would be too obvious and she was reasonably certain Peter wasn’t watching her; she knew he wasn’t following her. Peter trusted her, Jacobs trusted her and Marissa seemed to as well.

Things were almost going as planned.

Almost.

Matt Parkman and Audrey Hanson’s return had not been foreseen. Maggie’s contacts at Primatech had not warned her they’d be back, which made her wonder if they even knew they were gone. It made her very uneasy.

The situation at the outpost didn’t worry her, not at all. Maggie knew it wasn’t the Order, they’d never make a move without Primatech’s blessing. It was probably just a few stragglers coming their way having heard about the colony. If anything it was a great excuse to get Niki out of her hair.

Locking the door to the radio room behind her, she finally looked over her shoulder just to be certain she was alone.

As soon as she turned to the correct frequency a voice came across the speaker.

“This isn’t your normal transmit time.”

“We’ve got a situation,” Maggie said calmly.

“What’s happened?”

“We’ve had guests.”

There was a heavy pause on the other end.

“Two,” Maggie answered. “From the south. What do you want me to do?”

Again there was a pause, this one longer than the last.

“Expect more company by the end of the week,” the voice finally said. “Lots of company. If they don’t succeed, go to the backup plan.”

“Are you…”

“If they don’t succeed,” the voice repeated, “go to the backup plan.”

“Understood.”

****

Matt had awoken momentarily confused.

He was in bed with a woman, and that woman was not his wife.

That’s as far as he got at first. As far as he could process before his memories seized up.

Slowly, it always started to come back slowly, he began to remember.

His wife’s name was Janice and that was still not her. It was Audrey. Audrey who he worked with. For? No, with. He worked with Audrey and they were trying to catch…

Matt shook his head as if that might jump start the process.

Every day was like this; every day he had to struggle to regain it all again. Sometimes more than once.

He just had to concentrate. Let one thought lead to the next and he somehow knew it would be alright.

Audrey.

Matt looked over at her and tried to think, but his thoughts stalled.

After Audrey, he’d stalled.

Matt couldn’t get past waking up beside her. Instead of trying to remember what happened next, he was stuck thinking about what happened now.

Why were they in bed together?

Shaking his head once more, Matt tried again to move on. Just because they’d been in bed together didn’t mean anything had happened. He had to push aside the guilt that was welling up inside his chest and keep thinking; keep remembering.

Because Matt knew that wasn’t it.

The memory lapses, the holes and gaps, it was as if he could feel them. He knew something wasn’t right in his head. Matt knew and he struggled against it. He knew that if he just concentrated eventually it would begin to fall back into place. It had to, but he knew that wasn’t true. Some days it didn’t. Some days he was just stuck.

He couldn’t let that happen, so he went back to Audrey.

They’d been after Sylar; that was it. Sylar was the next link in the chain. Sylar, New York, and then Claire.

Now it was really rolling like an avalanche down a hill.

Every day was like that, every time the lapses occurred. Matt always stalled on Audrey and always finished with Claire.

He thought it might have something to do with Audrey being the only one left in his life from before. She’d been the only one that had really known him prior to all of this so it was harder to get past her, to connect the dots from the past to the present.

With Claire it was clear.

Standing up Matt knew there were still parts that weren’t all there, but he remembered enough. He knew they were in Boston having escaped from Primatech. He could recall the conversations they’d had early that morning.

He remembered why Audrey was sleeping beside him.

Resisting the urge to just crawl back into bed with her, instead he made his way to the bathroom anxious for a shower and a shave; anything to feel normal again.

Ten minutes later he heard the door open.

“How are you?” Audrey asked from the other side of the curtain.

“Good,” he answered. “Pretty good.”

“Good,” she echoed.

For a moment there was only the sound of running water.

“If you want we can go over to the Market,” Audrey continued. “Get some dinner.”

“Yeah, we can do that.”

This was the worst of it, Matt decided. There was always those first few moments with Audrey, with her trying to decide if he really did recollect it all or if he was still lost.

This was why, in a lot of ways, he was glad he couldn’t hear inside her head anymore. Matt didn’t want to know what Audrey felt about all of this. He wasn’t sure he could take that bit of truth.

“You know,” she said with a small laugh having obviously decided he was himself, “I’m pretty sure they’re trying to conserve water here.”

“Well,” he returned with good humor, “all things considered, I think they might owe me at least this. One long shower and then we’re even.”

“I don’t think anyone would argue that,” she said after a brief pause.

“But, if you really want to conserve water you can join me.”

“Really?” Audrey laughed.

Matt opened the curtain just enough to get a look at her; to see her smiling.

“I’m waiting.”

She locked eyes with him. It was the first time in a long time that she could remember him seeming so normal, so aware and so like his old self.

Audrey couldn’t help but kiss him.  



	6. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 9: Whisper**

For a few moments Claire had been worried. When Audrey and Matt had shown up to dinner, Nathan had still been sitting with them. To Claire’s relief, Nathan bowed out; Nathan got up and left with just a quick goodbye to his brother before they’d gotten very far into the room, probably even before Matt or Audrey had seen him. Claire, while still far from even liking Nathan, was grateful and gave him a quick smile for his good deed.

When they did sit down just opposite her and Peter, Claire realized she’d been worrying about the wrong thing. That she should have known Matt was still going to be angry with her, and spent most of his time talking to either D.L. or Mohinder, any one other than her.

With her usual means of communicating with Matt a bust, Claire tried to be patient. She tried to just wait until she was given an opportunity to talk to him, but it seemed as if one wasn’t going to happen. Everyone just kept talking and talking, and yes, she realized they probably missed him too, but enough already.

Claire hated it when he was mad, and hated it more when he was mad at her. And it was all ridiculous because if anyone should be mad at anyone, Claire should be mad at Matt and not the other way around.

“You alright?”

Claire looked up at Peter and smiled, before realizing almost everyone was looking her way.

“I’m just… It’s been a long day.”

“Why don’t you call it a night?” Peter suggested, putting an arm around her shoulder.

“I’m not tired like that,” Claire answered. “I’m just mentally drained.”

Claire finally caught Matt’s attention, and she knew that look; he was ready to stop fighting and at least pretend everything was okay between them.

“So,” Matt said, clearing his throat, “are you two going to tell us who most of these people are? I only know about dozen people in this room.”

“Yeah,” Peter said. “At the end of the table with Jacobs is Maggie.”

“The Maggie we were talking about?” Audrey asked in a lower voice.

Peter gave her a quick nod before he continued. “You pretty much know everyone else here, except Lauren, who is sitting next to Ando.”

Both Matt and Audrey gave her a quick glance before turning their attention back to the pair in front of them.

“Who is Marissa from the council?” Matt asked.

“She’s on the other side of Jacobs,” Claire answered. “The older woman, gray hair, kind of short.”

“You get to call people short?” Matt asked with a smile.

“Yeah, that’s funny,” Claire deadpanned.

“Oh,” Micah said, interrupting them, “hey, Matt. Audrey wanted me to look at that um…”

Micah stopped self-consciously, not sure what to call the mark on Matt’s arm.

“Why?” Matt asked, turning to Audrey with a serious expression on his face.

“Because he can kill it,” Audrey explained simply. “You don’t want that thing…”

“No,” Matt readily agreed, as he held his wrist out for Micah to examine. “Here. Have at it.”

“Was it bad?” D.L. asked quietly.

“Thankfully, I don’t remember right now,” Matt said, still serious. “I’m sure it wasn’t good.”

D.L. nodded slowly.

“Uh, Matt?”

“What?” he said, turning his attention back to Micah.

“You don’t have like a pacemaker or something, right?”

“How old do you think I am?”

“Some people get them young,” Micah said somewhat defensively.

“He’s right,” Claire added with a smirk.

“No,” Matt answered. “I don’t. Why?”

“Okay,” Micah said skeptically.

“What’s wrong?” Mohinder asked, joining the conversation.

“It’s just…” Micah began to explain. “I short circuited the… the thing and well, I can still hear something inside you. Something electronic so, I thought…”

“Are you saying there’s something else inside me… ticking?” Matt asked.

“Kind of,” Micah said with a nod.

“What? What is it?” Audrey asked.

“I don’t know,” Micah admitted. “I don’t think it’s dangerous. I could short it out too, if you want.”

“Wait a minute,” Mohinder objected. “I’m not so sure you should do that. We don’t know what it is, or what it does. If it does anything.”

“Is there a way for you to find out?” Matt asked Micah.

“I think so,” Micah said. “I can try to connect with it. It should only take a second or two. It may not tell me much but it’s worth a shot.”

“You’re the expert,” Matt said.

“Now,” Micah said, as he took hold of Matt’s wrist again, “you may feel a slight shock.”

Matt just nodded, ready for him to begin.

“Here it goes,” Micah said.

It wasn’t a shock, it was a roar.

Matt was positive his head was going to explode; the noise was so loud and intense. It was as if everyone in the entire room suddenly started screaming in his head. There was so much of it Matt couldn’t hear, couldn’t distinguish one sound from the next.

It was intense as it was thankfully brief.

“What the hell was that?”

Matt looked over in surprise at Peter who seemed as rattled as he felt.

“What happened?” Audrey asked, casting worried looks from Matt to Peter and back again.

“Did you hear it?” Peter asked Matt.

Matt only nodded.

His hands were shaking. It was still echoing in his head. How could he have not heard it?

“I’m sorry,” Micah said quickly. “I didn’t know…”

“It’s not your fault,” Matt just managed to say.

“What was that?” Peter repeated, dropping his head into his hands.

“I don’t know,” Matt answered, inadvertently mimicking Peter’s position.

His head was positively throbbing and he felt like he might be sick.

“It felt like someone turned the volume all the way up,” Matt said.

“I need some air,” Peter said, wobbling to his feet.

“Let me help,” Claire offered, standing to go with him.

“I really didn’t mean…” Micah continued to apologize.

“Really,” Matt said, “it’s fine. I told you to do it.”

“I know, but…”

“Micah, it’s fine.”

Micah finally nodded, accepting it.

“Was it your power? Is it back or what?” D.L. asked.

“No,” Matt answered. “I mean, yes it felt… it felt like it a little, but it’s not back. I can’t hear… I still can’t hear anything. Not anymore.”

“Do you think they put something in your head?” Mohinder asked. “Something to inhibit your power?”

“Like a microchip?” Audrey asked.

“Yes,” Mohinder nodded enthusiastically. “Micah, was that what it was like?”

“Yeah,” he agreed. “I think so.”

“Do you think you could short it out?” Mohinder asked eagerly.

“That might be it,” D.L. jumped in. “Matt, if Micah can stop it then…”

“No,” Matt said quickly. “Sorry, and no offense Micah, but I’m not really up for a second round right now.”

“It wouldn’t take long,” Micah promised. “A few seconds. Now that I know where it is and what it does, it’ll be much quicker.”

“Is it safe?” Audrey asked skeptically. “I mean, are we even sure that this…”

“It doesn’t matter,” Matt said, standing abruptly, “I’m not doing it. Thank you, but no thanks.”

Matt walked off without another word, leaving them all staring after him.

“Okay,” D.L. said, “what was that all about?”

Audrey couldn’t answer, only shook her head and looked down at the table.

“Audrey?” Mohinder said gently, coming over and taking Matt’s now empty chair. “Are you alright?”

Mohinder and Audrey had become fast friends during the years they’d spent living in D.C. while everyone they knew was on the run. They’d seen more of one another during that time than of anyone else and had learned to trust and rely on one another quite a bit.

“I’m fine,” she said resolutely. “It’s just, she’s right. He really can be impossible sometimes.”

****

“I don’t see anything yet.”

“Keep looking,” Niki said quietly as she and Franco crept closer and closer to their final destination.

“You know it doesn’t exactly work well in the dark, right?” he returned with a slight grin. “I don’t have night vision. Maybe you should have asked Maggie to come along.”

“No,” Niki said quickly causing Franco to chuckle slightly.

“You really don’t like her, do you?”

“I don’t like a lot of people,” Niki retorted with a ghost of a smile, “and I trust even fewer than that.”

“Remind me to stay on your good side.”

“Oh, you’ll know when you’re not.”

Franco gave another quiet laugh as he continued to look around the wooded area they were in. They were only about a quarter of a mile away from the outpost and so far had seen nothing out of the ordinary.

“So why don’t you like her?” Franco continued to question.

“I just don’t,” Niki said, looking around and disturbed by the unnatural silence.

“It’s what she can do, isn’t it? The whole shadow walking bit she’s got going on. It’s creepy.”

“My husband walks through walls,” Niki said with a faint laugh. “Who am I to judge?”

Franco stopped momentarily, straining to see ahead.

“I think I see something. The lights are on in the cabin but…”

“Let’s just hurry,” Niki urged.

The two picked up their pace, caring less about being seen or heard.

“So why do you care so much that I don’t like Maggie,” Niki said after a few minutes more.

“I don’t know,” he said, “I just assumed you’d want to take her on these things instead of me. You know, given where I come from.”

“No one cares you had to work for the Order,” Niki said sincerely. “We all know why. And frankly, if Mohinder and Claire can still put in a good word for you after all of that then I’m convinced.”

“Thanks,” he said with a faint smile.

“Besides,” she said with a steady voice, “that shadow thing is creepy.”

Franco started to laugh but stopped abruptly.

“We’re here,” he said.

As he’d told her, the lights were on. All of them. That in and of itself was not disturbing; what was disturbing was the fact that the front door was ajar.

“Do you see anything?” Niki whispered.

He nodded shortly as he lifted his rifle into the ready position.

“What?” she asked, tensing up as well.

“Blood.”

Niki went in first.

The front room looked completely deserted but there were obvious signs of a struggle. The furniture had been pushed about, tossed even, and there was some blood on the walls and on the floor.

It’s where they found the first body.

“It’s Sarah,” Franco said as he leaned over the body.

This had been Sarah’s first assignment at an outpost. She had eagerly volunteered to man the radio, like most of the volunteers, just happy to be doing her part.

“Jason and Tom can’t be far off,” Niki said tightly, already fearing the worse.

She was right.

Jason, the same young man who had lead Niki and Micah to the colony from Trenton, was dead in the hallway. It looked as if his neck had been snapped. Niki could hardly look at him.

Franco scanned ahead of them, spotting the third body in the back bedroom. Leading the way, he opened the door and momentarily lost his composure.

“My God,” he said quietly, lowering his gun as he stepped carefully into the room.

Niki, right behind him, took in the sight as best she could. However, she was unable to stop the sheer dread that began to well up inside her.

“This…” Franco stammered. “This is not the Order. This… It can’t be. They don’t…”

“No,” Niki said softly. “They don’t.”

Tom’s body was in the very center of the room, the furniture having all been shoved aside, lying in a puddle of blood.

Tom was had been in charge of this outpost. He was the one who had notified Niki via radio of the situation and he was one of those few people she thought well of.

He was also the only one of the three stationed here with a power.

Tom could bend and manipulate light, use it offensively and defensively, which explained in part why they whole place was lit up. If they were being attacked, the more light Tom had to work with the better.

But it hadn’t been enough.

“How did this happen?” Franco asked, still staring down in disbelief. “I mean, have you ever seen anything…”

“Yes,” was her short but full answer to the question he hadn’t finished.

Niki couldn’t take her eyes off of it, as grotesque as it was. And she knew, she knew what this meant. How bad it was. How bad it was going to become.

She almost wished it was the Order.

“We need to go,” she finally said, snapping herself out of it.

“But the bodies,” Franco argued. “We can’t leave them here… Not like this.”

“There’s no time,” Niki said, already turning and heading for the door at a brisk pace. “We’ve got to get back to the colony now. Warn them. Move. Do something.”

“What’s this about?” Franco asked, running to catch her. “What is it? How…”

“Don’t you know?” Niki said, turning to face him with a look that was frightening. Frightening because it betrayed how terrified she was. “Haven’t you heard of this? What this…”

“No,” Franco said as he grasped what she was implying. “It’s not… No. No, it can’t be. That’s a legend. That’s a myth.”

“It’s not,” Niki assured him. “It’s not. He’s real and he did this.”

“I can’t…”

“Start believing it,” Niki practically yelled.

“Couldn’t it just be a coincidence?” he suggested. He had too. It was easier to believe that.

“Coincidence?” Niki repeated. “Tom’s head was sliced open and unless I’m mistaken he’s missing his brain. He’s the only one of the three here like that and he’s the only one of the three here who had a power. That’s no coincidence.”

“Maybe the Order just wants us to think…”

“The Order? Tom would have blinded them. He would have fought tooth and nail. Jason and Sarah were armed. You don’t think they’d manage to kill a few of them if they were being attacked? What did this couldn’t stopped, couldn’t be controlled. They had no warning and no way to defend themselves.”

Franco nodded slowly in agreement. Niki was right and he knew it. This wasn’t just an ambush or an attack, it was a slaughter.

“I don’t like leaving them like this,” Niki continued, her voice starting to shake ever so slightly, “but we have no choice. We’ve got to get back and find a way…”

“How? How are we going to stop it?”

Niki shook her head slowly.

“I don’t know.”

Shaking herself from her thoughts, Niki started to move again with renewed energy. She had to get back. She had to warn them. They’d need every moment to think and plan what to do next; how to defend themselves.

“So is this it?” Franco asked quietly from behind. “Does it happen all over again?”

“No,” Niki said forcefully. “This time, we stop him.”

Franco nodded in agreement, following silently in her footsteps.

“This time,” Niki said under her breath in a near whisper. “This time, I swear, Peter isn’t facing him alone.”  



	7. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 10: Listen**

“Are you okay?”

Peter looked up and managed a small “yes” to Claire, still unable to entirely rid himself of the eerie sensation that had overcome him listening to all of those voices simultaneously.

“I just need a minute or two,” Peter finished.

Claire stood beside him waiting patiently.

Finally Peter sat down and exhaled softly.

“What was it?” Claire asked him, sitting beside him. “What was it like?”

“Intense,” Peter said giving his head a shake. “Whatever Micah did, however he did it, there was no controlling it. No stopping… I heard everyone. Everyone in that room all at once. As clear as you’re talking to me right now, just louder. Much…”

Peter still couldn’t get past it.

“That can’t be what it’s like all the time,” Peter said looking to Claire for confirmation. “I mean, for Matt when he can… when he could use his power, right? I know there was feedback the first few times I mimicked him, but nothing… it was nothing like that.”

“He’s had problems with it before,” Claire said hesitantly, not really sure if this fell under the category of private or not. Claire didn’t want to knowingly betray Matt’s trust in her, but thought that since it was affecting Peter as well, he must have the right to know some of it. “When he first started hearing it and a few times when it evolved, but I don’t think it was like that. Not that bad.”

“Problems how?” Peter asked.

“I’m not sure I should… it’s really not…”

“No,” Peter said quickly, “I understand. I don’t expect you to tell me his life story, I just thought…”

Peter trailed off, not knowing how to finish.

“It’s nothing bad,” Claire assured him, “it’s just, it took him a long time to really get some control over it. We all did.”

“I don’t think you did,” Peter said with a smile.

“Well, okay,” Claire admitted, “but what I can do isn’t something that needs controlling. What you do, what Matt does… both of you had to learn how to stop it. Everyone else had to learn how to start.”

“You’ve been giving this a lot of thought,” Peter said with a smile.

“Yes,” she smiled back at him. “I have. And you know, neither of you would have the powers you do if you couldn’t control them. I know you’re still struggling with it, but you can do it.”

“Thanks,” Peter returned. “I am struggling but it’s getting easier. You know, I think that’s why I was so surprised. I had thought I’d gotten the hang of shutting it on and off and then back there, I wasn’t ready for that.”

“If it was as strong as you said it was I’m not surprised,” Claire reasoned. “And you weren’t expecting that, you weren’t ready.”

Peter nodded.

“Feeling better?” Claire asked.

“Yeah,” Peter answered. “I am.”

They sat together, enjoying the silence of the night for a moment.

“You should tell him that,” Peter finally said.

“Matt?” Claire said surprised before shaking his head. “No, he wouldn’t listen. He’s not ready to listen. Besides, he just stopped being mad at me, I don’t want…”

“He’ll listen to you,” Peter interrupted.

“I’m not so sure,” Claire said, looking at her hands.

“Why not?”

“Because part of me thinks he’s right.”

“You think he’s right to just give up like that?”

“No,” Claire said quickly, “but I know why he wants to. Part of me gets that. I know none of us asked to be this way, but some of us really wanted it. Matt didn’t and neither did I. And if someone told me they could make it go away, well… I’d at least consider it.”

“Really?”

“Yeah,” Claire said honestly. “I know what I do is instinctive, that my body just heals on it’s own without any real effort on my part, but sometimes I don’t… It’s like, I have all these questions about it and no one can answer them. Like, how far does it go? When does it stop? It’s progressed to the point where not only do I heal but I can hardly be hurt in the first place. What does that mean? It’s… it’s a little scary. When does it stop being a gift, an obligation, and start becoming a curse?”

“I never thought about it like that.”

“To be fair,” Claire said lightly, “you did have that whole three years off.”

Peter let out a low chuckle.

“So why did you come down so hard on him?” Peter asked. “If you can understand his point, why not just reason with him?”

“Because I was angry,” Claire answered, “and I don’t always think before I speak. And mostly because, even if we question it, even if we doubt, we can’t really deny that it’s a part of who we are. That, like it or not, we were meant to have these powers. We were meant to do something with them.”

Peter gave her a wide smile.

“What?” she asked with a slight giggle.

“You make a lot of sense, you know that?”

“I was wondering how long it would take you to realize that.”

****

Drip.

‘…it’s so close…’

Drip.

‘…destiny…’

Drip.

‘…please help…’

…

Peter woke with a start once more, but not from the dream. He woke from the sound of someone banging on his door.

“What is it?” Peter asked as he opened it.

“You’ve got a call on the radio,” D.L. said.

“Call?” Peter asked, still yawning.

“It’s Niki.”

“What does she…”

“She wants to talk to you,” D.L. interrupted.

“Alright,” Peter said, stretching and reaching for a sweatshirt. “I hope it’s good news.”

“I wouldn’t count on that,” D.L. returned.

A few minutes later they were making their way through the Market towards the radio room. Passing through the center of the building both men stopped as they spotted Matt sitting alone at one of the tables.

“Hey,” Peter called out, “Matt. Everything okay?”

Matt looked up, startled out of his thoughts, and nodded.

“Yeah,” he said, standing and walking towards them, “I couldn’t sleep. I mean, I’ve been sleeping for days. Whatever it is I’m coming out of it, I think.”

Peter nodded slowly, not entirely understanding what he’d meant.

“What’s with the jacket?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” Matt returned. “I’m just cold. All the time now. I…”

Matt trailed off uncharacteristically, seemingly content staring off into nothing.

“Peter,” D.L. said quietly, “we’re in a hurry here.”

“Matt,” Peter said, legitimately concerned, “why don’t you come with us?”

Matt hesitated for a moment before agreeing. If he hadn’t, Peter would have asked D.L. to stay with him. He didn’t like the way Matt was acting at the moment.

They made their way quickly down the corridor where D.L. opened the door to the radio room and Peter went straight to the only one lit up at the moment.

“Niki?” he asked into it.

“Peter, good,” he heard come across the line. “Are you alone?”

“No it’s me, D.L. and Matt. Why?”

“Matt?” she asked sounding surprised.

“Yeah, he and Audrey…”

“Tell me later,” she said, the connection growing weaker. “We’ve been to the outpost.”

“And? Is everything okay?”

“They’re dead,” she answered.

“Can you repeat that?” Peter asked, certain he hadn’t heard correctly.

“Dead, Peter,” Niki repeated. “All of them.”

“How?” he asked, his voice gone cold. “Was it them? Was it the Order that did this?”

“No. It wasn’t…”

“Niki you’re breaking up,” Peter said. “Who was it? Where are you?”

“We’re on our way back. We’ll be there tonight. You need to start getting everyone ready. Start preparing…”

“Ready for what?” Peter asked. “If it’s not the Order then…”

“It’s Sylar.”

Peter looked first at D.L. and then at Matt; each man wore the same shocked expression.

“Can you repeat that?”

“Sylar, Peter,” Niki said. “It’s Sylar.”

“Alright,” Peter said into the radio. “We’ll… we’ll take care of it. Hurry back.”

“Out,” Niki said just before the connection died.

Peter turned back to the other two men and didn’t know what to say.

“I am awake, right?” Matt asked, looking from one to the other quite earnestly. “I mean, really? This isn’t some massive hallucination or…”

“Is she serious?” D.L. asked in disbelief. “She was, wasn’t she? Niki thinks Sylar…”

“We’ve got to… to do something,” Peter said somewhat uselessly.

“Well, yeah,” D.L. said.

“What though?” Peter asked. “What… what does she expect us to do?”

“Get ready,” D.L. answered. “If Sylar is headed this way then we’ve got to be ready for him.”

“If he’s headed this way he could be here any minute now,” Peter fired back. “That outpost is only a day away. If Niki and Franco made it there already…”

“He might not know where we are,” D.L. said. “Matt and Audrey knew we were in Boston and still didn’t find us for some time.”

“It didn’t take that long,” Peter returned. “And he’ll know. He’ll hone in on us like some kind of sick beacon. Like a lighthouse in a storm. We’ve got to wake everyone up now…”

“Wake everyone up?” D.L. repeated. “Then what? Tell them the boogeyman is back? Peter, we’ve got to have a plan first.”

“I know,” Peter said. “I know that, but what? What are we going to do to him? He’s…”

“Guys,” Matt said sharply. “Stop. Alright, enough of this.”

Peter and D.L. looked at him surprised. Matt looked suddenly alert, like he’d finally woken up and joined them in conversation; in the present.

“First,” Matt said decisively, “we need to wake up the rest of your council. Jacobs and Marissa, right? Get them up and involved. Probably Hiro and Maggie too. We don’t need a mob thinking this out, just a few people. That’s seven; that should be enough. Whatever needs to be done needs to happen quickly. Anyone with a power is in danger right now and… and let’s be honest, we know he’s after Claire. He’ll take any power he can get but he has a thing for her, and for you too, Peter. I’m not sure that either of you…”

“We’ll work out logistics later,” Peter said with a short nod.

“I’ll go get Hiro and Maggie,” D.L. said in agreement, already heading for the door.

“I’ll wake up Marissa and Jacobs,” Peter said, beginning to move for the door as well.

Matt just nodded, taking a deep breath and looking down briefly.

“Matt,” Peter said from the doorway.

“Yeah?”

“Thanks.”

It took twenty minutes for the group to gather, go over the situation and dissolve into absolute silence.

“Dear God,” Jacobs whispered.

“We’ll need to get everyone to City Hall,” Marissa suggested. “It’s the only building large enough, secure enough to house the colony and possibly stave off an attack.”

“You realize that he won’t be interested in anyone without an ability,” Jacobs said. “If you think it’s best, we…”

“We do this together or not at all,” Marissa said firmly.

Jacobs only nodded in silent agreement.

“What’s our weapon situation?” he said, turning to Maggie.

“Good,” she said with a nod. “Very good. We can place our best marksmen on the roof and hope…”

She stopped and shook her head. Maggie, like the rest of them, knew that guns were pretty much pointless in this situation. They didn’t seem to affect him at all.

“We’ll need provisions,” Jacobs continued. “We’ll need to start moving as much of the food and water as we can immediately.”

“I’ll organize it,” D.L. offered.

“We should send out scouts,” Hiro suggested. “Just to be certain. To see if he’s really coming this way.”

“I’ve got that covered,” Peter said quickly.

“Peter,” Jacobs said, “we can’t afford…”

“Don’t worry,” Peter assured him. “I’ll be here.”

“Alright,” the older man said, content with that answer. “What else?”

“We can start moving people at daybreak,” Maggie said. “D.L., we’ll need Micah to make sure everything is running. Will that be a problem?”

“No,” D.L. answered.

“Okay then,” Jacobs said. “Maggie you’ve got security, D.L. you’ve got provisions and the rest of us will lead the actual move.”

“When will that be?” Peter asked.

“Not until we’ve got power and at least minimum provisions in place,” Jacobs answered. “Until then I want everyone to stay put. Stay on the offense.”

“What about the other people in the area?” Hiro asked. “The township in Salem. The colony north of us. Shouldn’t we try and warn them?”

“There isn’t time,” Jacobs said.

“I have all the time in the world,” Hiro countered. “Lauren and I could go and be back in a few hours.”

It was then that Peter, Jacobs and Marissa all looked to one another concerned.

Peter knew now was not the time to bring it up, but if Lauren really was a spy for Primatech, sending her off with Hiro could be seen both ways; good and bad. Good, because she wouldn’t have the chance to notify anyone of what was happening. Bad, because she’d have to be told where they were going and why and she might make plans to simply flee before they had a chance to question her.

Matt, the only other person in the room that knew why they were hesitating, said nothing.

“There might be a situation,” Jacobs began hesitantly, “with Lauren.”

“What?” Hiro asked in surprise.

Jacobs looked at Matt and nodded, indicating for him to tell them the truth.

“Are you sure?” he asked.

Jacobs only nodded.

Matt wasn’t sure why he’d hesitated, he knew Jacobs was serious, but he was wary. He realized it was an old habit, that before speaking Matt had grown accustomed to hearing the thoughts of others, hearing their reactions, and now he couldn’t.

And now he probably needed to the most.

There were two people in the room he didn’t know and therefore didn’t trust. And of those two, one he was certain hadn’t yet learned he’d been in Texas.

Matt would have liked to have heard that reaction.

“Okay,” he said heavily, “I’ll give you the short version because I think most of you already know the long one. Audrey and I were in Texas looking into Primatech and we… she came across some evidence that Primatech has someone here. That they have someone here looking into us, what we can do and how, and that they are eventually planning to come pick us all up.”

For a moment there was silence and the only thing Matt could do was read the shocked expressions off of the three faces he’d expected to react that way.

“What does that…” Hiro started to ask, but stopped mid-sentence and shook his head.

“You think it’s Lauren?” Maggie picked up, surprised as well.

“We’re not sure,” Peter admitted. “We know that Beatrice and Albert were working with them before and it’s likely that they sent someone new…”

“No,” Hiro said quickly. “It’s not her. I know it’s not her.”

“Hiro,” Jacobs said, “no one is accusing her. We just need to be careful who…”

“But it isn’t her,” Hiro said firmly. “Lauren didn’t come to the colony, we came to her. She was here when we arrived. In the city. How could they have known that? Known where we would settle?”

Peter hadn’t thought of that; from the looks of it, neither had Marissa. Only Jacobs didn’t look persuaded by the argument.

“Boston was the backup plan,” he said. “Beatrice, Albert, Daniel - they always intended to move if things got bad. Isn’t that right, Maggie?”

Maggie only nodded.

“We always knew that there was the possibility of the Order coming after us,” Jacobs continued. “When they did, we had planned to come here. So yes, they could have known.”

“But why bother spying?” D.L. asked. “If they’ve known where we are all this time, why not just come themselves?”

“They don’t have the resources to take us all in,” Matt answered. “They can only contain, physically contain, a few of us at a time.”

“I still don’t believe it is Lauren,” Hiro said after a brief pause. “She is my friend and I don’t believe that she would do this.”

“You still want to take her with you?” Marissa asked. “Even with the possibility that she might…”

“Yes,” Hiro said resolutely. “I’ll still ask her to come.”

“Okay,” Peter said before anyone else had the chance. “Just be careful. And hurry back.”

Hiro nodded briefly before standing.

“We’ll go within the hour,” he said, “and we’ll be back before noon.”

“Good luck,” D.L. said quietly.

“Yeah,” Peter echoed. “Good luck.”

Hiro gave them all one last look before turning to go.

“I think we all know what to do,” Jacobs said, standing as well.

As everyone got to their feet, Matt approached Peter.

“What can I do?” he asked. “How can I help?”

“Right now,” Peter said, shaking his head, “I’m not sure. Help D.L., help Maggie. We’re going to need to move the radios, but I imagine Micah will want to do that himself.”

“Okay,” Matt said with a short nod, “what about the scouts? What do you have in mind?”

“I’m going to ask Nathan.”

Matt reacted about as well as Peter had expected him too, his face going completely blank.

“Are you…”

“He can fly,” Peter interrupted. “He can fly, he can check out the area quicker than anyone else, and he wants to help.”

Matt said nothing.

“I know how you feel about him,” Peter began tentatively, “but he is still my brother and a year and a half is a long time. Nathan really regrets…”

“Don’t,” Matt said shortly. “Just, don’t alright? I don’t want to hear about how bad he feels. If you think he’s right for this than I’m not going to argue with you.”

“Okay.”

Matt gave him one last nod before turning to go.

Peter thought momentarily about stopping him but didn’t know what to say if he did. He knew Matt probably needed to hear everything Claire had told him earlier, but that wasn’t Peter’s place.

Peter just had to hope that when Claire did find the time to talk to Matt again that this time he’d listen.  



	8. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 11: Think**

Hiro had told her what was happening and why they had to hurry. Lauren didn’t question it, didn’t hesitate, just agreed to join him and rushed to get ready.

They would only need a small provision of food and a change of clothes as it was just going to be the two of them traveling with time stopped to the four or five larger settlements giving out warnings. Because of that they’d only be gone a few hours, just the amount of time it took to get the message across and no more.

Still, they were in a hurry.

However, hurry or not, Lauren had already made up her mind that she was going to stop and say goodbye to Ando.

It was silly and probably unnecessary, in actuality they might even be back before half the colony was awake, but she wanted to do it. Time would only be stopped for everyone else, not for her or for Hiro; to her it was going to be a very long trip.

Lauren tapped gently on his door, just loud enough to be heard. On the third knock he opened it looking more than a little sleepy.

“It’s four o’clock,” he said to her through a yawn. “What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

“Sorry,” she said, beginning to regret her impulse to stop by, “I just… we’ve got to go and…”

“Go?” Ando asked, stepping aside and letting her into his room. “Go where? Why?”

“Business for the council,” Lauren answered, not having the time to explain it fully. “It won’t take long, not as far as you’ll know anyway, but I wanted to say goodbye.”

“Oh,” Ando said softly.

“So,” Lauren said, suddenly bashful, “goodbye, then.”

“Have a safe trip,” he said, smiling tightly and casually taking her hand into his.

“I will,” she said looking down somewhat embarrassed.

When she could manage it, she looked up again. Looked up into his eyes and saw him moving closer to her. She shut her own eyes lightly, leaning into him as well…

“Hey, Ando,” Claire called out, pushing the door open causing the two of them to jump apart.

Claire wanted to kick herself.

“I’m so sorry,” she said, backing out the door. “I didn’t mean to just…”

“It’s okay,” Lauren said quickly. “I have to go anyway and well... bye.”

With that, Lauren nearly ran out of the room, pushing past Claire and looking at nothing but the floor.

“I am so sorry,” Claire repeated once she and Ando were alone again.

“What’s going on?” he asked instead, shaking off his momentary embarrassment.

“We’ve got a whole situation,” Claire said with a suddenly serious attitude. “They want everyone to stick together or at least double up.”

“Where’s your double?” Ando asked, quickly putting on his shoes and a light jacket.

“Across the hall,” Claire said, jerking a thumb over her shoulder. “Maggie and I are waking everyone up. We’re all supposed to stay at the Market unless assigned another detail.”

“Why?” Ando asked, moving with her into the hallway. “Claire, what’s happening? Really?”

“It’s Sylar,” she finally answered. “The outpost that Niki went to check, that was him. He killed… They think he’s headed this way. We’re going to move everyone to City Hall later today.”

“Then where are Lauren and Hiro going?” Ando asked, his voice full of concern.

“To warn the other colonies around us,” Claire answered. “Micah is radioing our other outposts, putting them on alert and Nathan is going to check the area.”

“What else are we doing?”

“What else can we do?”

****

“You should have woken me up earlier,” Audrey said as she pulled on a new shirt.

“I’m sorry,” Matt said. “I wasn’t thinking, okay?”

Audrey didn’t respond, just continued to get ready as an icy silence settled around them.

When Matt had left the make-shift cafeteria earlier that evening it didn’t take long before Audrey had joined him back in their room. And that hadn’t gone well. It was by no means their first fight, but it was their first one since she’d pulled him out of that Primatech lab in the Republic.

And it was the first time he didn’t fight back, just kind of took it, and that really only pissed her off more.

It ended when he left hoping to give her a chance to cool off. Of course that hadn’t exactly worked out as planned. Matt had come back and woke her up, not to apologize, but to let her know everything that was suddenly going on with Sylar and the colony.

Matt knew he should say something, should do something to make it right, but couldn’t. It was easier to fall back on old habits.

Ignore the problem and hope it goes away.

It was unrealistic, guaranteed to fail, and the basic philosophy that had nearly ruined his life. And yet, here he was, once more, employing a tactic he knew wouldn’t succeed.

Why did he keep doing this?

Matt knew why, he knew exactly why he kept doing it.

It was easy.

It was easier to quit, or ignore it, to just give up. But it was also something he’d sworn off a long time ago.

Not that it had made a difference.

When he’d first discovered what he could do, Matt had finally decided to take action. To really do something with his life and, well, this was the end result.

He’d confronted the problems in his marriage head on and it hadn’t been enough. Janice had died and that was his fault. Even if she had lived it wouldn’t have lasted. It was too little, too late and Matt knew it. He didn’t even blame her for the affair; truth was, he’d never been much of a husband.

The first time Matt had ever taken charge, really taken charge of a situation had been in New York and it really hadn’t been a choice; he had to do it. It was only him and Claire and, attitude or not, she expected it of him. Claire was the first person to actually have expectations of him; she’d counted on him to figure it all out and basically save them both. There were times he thought he’d be crushed under the weight of it, but somehow, he’d done it. They’d done it.

That experience, frightening and surreal, had given him confidence and now… now it was just gone.

And it wasn’t hard to understand why.

Despite his best effort, both he and Claire had ended up caught by the Order. Worse still they’d involved Audrey and Mohinder. And then there was the Republic and the trip to Primatech. Being taken once more and having no idea what had happened. He knew Audrey was glad he didn’t remember, but for him it was like torture. The not knowing was killing him.

Between the five months he couldn’t get back no matter what, the constant need to recall and reorder his memories, the confinement, the stress and the stench of failure that seemed to follow after wherever he went, was it any wonder he had a defeatist attitude?

Add to that the fact that he now had nothing to offer the group, that he couldn’t even do the one thing that had set him apart, if just a bit.

What good was he?

Matt shook his head and tried to resume the task at hand. Tried to concentrate on the fact that there wasn’t time for this; not now and really not ever.

He had to snap out of this. He had to pull himself together and just start over again, pure and simple. Forget it and move on already, because even if people weren’t depending on him anymore he had to expect better from himself.

Matt had sworn off this attitude and had meant it; it was time to remember that.

And Matt knew how to begin.

Matt had only given his power a few half-hearted attempts since he and Audrey had gotten away. His power was never something he had to try and use before, only something he had to try and stop. Because of that he had largely gone off of the assumption that it was no longer there, but the incident with Micah had proven otherwise.

It was still there, and if it was, he could probably still use it if he tried hard enough.

Matt turned towards Audrey, who was still pulling a few things together, and took a deep breath. Not entirely sure he wanted to hear what she might have on her mind at the moment, but he was at least willing to give it a try.

_‘I … him some … already … together and … like … the enemy … trying to help.’_

No sooner than he’d realized that he’d actually succeeded, at least in part, it happened. The pain felt as if someone had jabbed a needle into the base of his skull. It was nothing like the headaches Matt had experienced before; this was piercing and unrelenting and fixated on one very specific spot.

His vision swam and before he knew it Audrey was holding on to him saying something he couldn’t understand.

“What’s wrong?” she asked. “Matt? Talk to me. What’s wrong?”

“Go get Micah.”

“What?” Audrey asked.

Matt’s voice was so strained she couldn’t make out what he was saying. He was just sitting there, where she’d placed him in the chair, hands on the back of his neck with his eyes shut tight.

“Micah,” he repeated. “Micah. Mohinder. Get someone. Something’s wrong.”

Audrey momentarily froze.

_‘ … if they … him? … if…’_

This time he hadn’t even tried to hear her. The words were just there; still broken, still incomplete, and more painful than the time before.

Matt clutched his neck tighter this time, rocking back in forth in a futile effort to ease the pain. Audrey didn’t need to see any more; she was out the door and racing down the hall in search of anyone who could help.

The first people she came across were Maggie and Claire.

“I need to find Mohinder and Micah,” Audrey panted. “Where are they?”

“What’s…”

“Where are they?” Audrey interrupted Maggie mid-question.

“The Market,” Claire answered. “What’s happened?”

“It’s Matt,” Audrey said, stopping before she rounded the last corner. “Go check on him just… alone, Claire… I don’t think he can handle more than one person in the room.”

“Is he alright?” Claire asked seriously worried.

“I can’t leave her alone,” Maggie countered.

“She won’t be alone,” Audrey spat back. “And don’t go into that room. Just Claire. Stand outside the door if you have to. I’ll be right back.”

She didn’t stick around to argue.

“Doesn’t she know…”

Claire didn’t stick around to hear her out either; she’d turned and began to run in the direction Audrey had come from.

“Claire,” Maggie called out. “It isn’t safe!”

Seeing she wasn’t going to be swayed, Maggie raced to keep up with her but was too late. Claire was already in the room, locking the door to ensure Audrey’s orders were carried out.

Claire heard Maggie calling out to her from the other side of the door but ignored it.

Making her way into the room she found Matt exactly as Audrey had left him.

“Don’t… Don’t think,” he said in an urgent whisper.

Claire nodded as she sat down next to him.

“Is that where it hurts?” Claire asked softly, putting her own hand over his that still rested on the nape of his neck.

Matt only nodded.

“Okay,” she said, “move your hands.”

“Claire…”

“Move them,” she said a bit more firmly.

Matt complied, moving them to his forehead instead. The pain immediately lessened, but didn’t disappear entirely. It was more like it had been muffled.

“Is it better?” she asked.

“Yeah,” he sighed.

“What happened?”

“I was trying to pick up Audrey’s thoughts and…”

“It hurt?”

“Like I was dying,” Matt said with a faint laugh.

“Was that the first time you’d tried?”

“No,” he answered. “I tried a few times before. This is the first time I’d tried since Micah did… whatever he did… and I’d never tried…”

“That hard?” Claire suggested as gently as she could.

Matt only nodded.

_‘Can … what I’m … now?’_

The pain worsened once more, but not nearly as badly as it could have been. If Claire hadn’t been deadening it, Matt knew he would have been screaming in pain.

“It’s broken,” he answered.

“Broken how?”

“The words,” he explained. “I’m only picking up a few at a time. And when I do, the pain comes back.”

“Are you trying…”

“No,” he answered with a shake of his head. “No, I’m just hearing them now.”

Claire looked up as she heard the doorknob turn.

D.L. walked in first, having unlocked the door in his own unique way, and stopped before getting too far.

“How is he?” Audrey asked, the very next one inside.

“Not unconscious,” Matt answered for himself. “I wish I was, but I’m not so…”

“Sorry,” Audrey said, kneeling down beside him and squeezing his knee.

Mohinder, Micah and Maggie all came in next.

“Just a few questions,” Mohinder said softly, moving to stand near Audrey, “I promise. And then we’ll step out and discuss…”

“Okay,” Matt interrupted, still not looking up. “If you’re going to discuss my options, you’re going to do it with me.”

“Alright,” Mohinder agreed.

“And could you three just take a huge step back,” Matt said, still not looking but waving vaguely at D.L., Micah and Maggie. “For now. Please? It’s like an angry buzz and I can’t… I can’t make it stop.”

“When did it start?” Mohinder asked.

“When I tried to use my power,” Matt answered. “Just now. It hasn’t stopped.”

“So you can hear us again?”

Matt nodded.

“Not completely,” Claire added. “You said it was breaking up.”

“Yeah, it is,” Matt echoed.

“The last time you tried, did this happen?” Mohinder asked.

“No,” Matt returned. “I just got nothing.”

“Maybe I accidentally triggered whatever they put inside him,” Micah suggested. “Turned it on or up or something.”

“If whatever it is was keeping him from using his power,” Mohinder continued in that vein, “then it’s possible. Maybe it was still being tested when Audrey got Matt out. It might not have been fully activated. There might be different settings. Who knows.”

“I could try to completely disable it,” Micah said. “Turn it off for good.”

“Or we could take it out,” Mohinder suggested.

“Maybe we should do both,” D.L. added.

“We don’t even know where it is,” Mohinder said.

“No,” Micah countered, “I got a good idea when I connected. It’s at the top of his neck. But we can do a CATSCAN to be certain, right?”

“It should pick it up,” Mohinder agreed.

“Whoa,” Audrey interrupted. “You all realize you are talking about digging into his head. If connecting with it did this, who knows what trying to disable it will do. You can’t just…”

“Something has to be done,” Matt cut in. “I mean, I can’t exactly ask everyone to stop thinking around me and I’m pretty sure Claire can’t walk around with me for the rest of my life.”

“That could get awkward,” Claire agreed.

“We have to do something,” Mohinder said echoing Matt’s sentiment.

“Wait a minute,” Matt said, lifting his head a bit and opening his eyes. “Audrey, think something at me.”

“Okay,” she said, sounding dubious.

The entire room went silent.

“Nothing,” Matt said after a pause. “I got nothing again.”

“The pain?” Claire asked.

“Gone,” he answered. “It’s all stopped.”

Claire hesitantly removed her hand, a skeptical look on her face; not sure how it could just stop that way.

But he did seem alright. Matt was sitting up again and looking around the room.

“Okay,” Mohinder said, sitting down on the bed. “Okay… Assuming it’s an inhibitor device of some sort they implanted in you, maybe there are different settings for active and passive powers?”

“What’s the difference?” D.L. asked.

“Um,” Mohinder stalled. “Alright, you have to turn on your power to phase through objects. Maggie has to concentrate to see in the dark. That’s active. You’re both actively controlling it. Whereas Claire heals herself no matter what and Matt had been hearing thoughts unbidden. That’s passive.”

“I had no idea you were thinking so deeply about all of this,” D.L. said with a small laugh.

“I have a lot of free time,” Mohinder returned.

“Alright,” Matt agreed, “but when I could read thoughts, I didn’t always just hear them. Sometimes I had to try and there are aspects of it that I definitely have to control.”

“But it started out passive,” Mohinder explained. “It comes back to that. The device might have two settings, one that completely blocks the power and one that gives off a negative reinforcement.”

“Okay,” Matt said with a nod. “I get it. I definitely wouldn’t use my power if every time I did I had to deal with that kind of pain, but you said my power was passive. Why am I not in constant pain? Why’d it stop?”

“I hate to interrupt,” Maggie said, clearing her throat to catch their attention, “but if he’s not in pain anymore, we’re wasting time. Remember Sylar? The move? We can’t spend all day here.”

“She’s right,” D.L. reluctantly agreed. “You four stay while Maggie, Micah and I will head back to the Market.”

“I’m not supposed to leave Claire…” Maggie started to argue.

“She’ll be fine,” D.L. interrupted ending the debate.

“If you decide you want to shut that thing off,” Micah said as they headed for the door, “I’ll be in the radio room.”

“Thanks, Micah,” Matt called out.

“What were you saying?” Audrey asked Mohinder as soon as they’d left.

“Actually, I don’t know,” Mohinder admitted. “I don’t know why it stopped. It shouldn’t have stopped. You hear these thoughts all the time without trying. You should still be in pain.”

“Well,” Claire started to say, stopping when they all turned to look at her.

“Yeah?” Matt asked.

“You could be just tuning us out,” Claire suggested as gently as she could. “Like a defense mechanism.”

“That’s…that’s possible,” Mohinder said with a nod.

“So if I try to hear thoughts again?” Matt asked.

“Expect it to be at least as painful as before.”

“At least?” Audrey repeated.

“Well,” Mohinder explain, “it could be incremental. That in order to teach someone not to use their power, each punishment worsens.”

“So what can we do?” Claire asked.

“Well, Maggie was right,” Mohinder said. “Matt isn’t in any immediate danger and…”

“Everyone else is,” Matt provided for him.

“Yes,” Mohinder continued. “But that doesn’t mean you’re not a priority. We need to take a look at that device. See if we can remove it or if Micah can shut it down permanently.”

“And until then?” Audrey asked.

Mohinder gave a small shrug.

“Don’t think.”  



	9. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 12: Suspicion**

It was close to noon when the first group of colonists began to make the move from Faneuil Hall to City Hall. They were relocating in small groups, heavily armed, and as quickly as was possible. Micah had already transported and set up the radios and D.L. had the majority of their supplies in place. So far things were going well, although Peter was beginning to worry.

Hiro and Lauren weren’t back yet and neither was Nathan.

Nathan’s absence he could account for because of the weather which had taken a nasty turn over the last few hours. It had first been only a light rain, but now it was a steady downpour. Flying in that wouldn’t be easy, even for Nathan. But Hiro and Lauren wouldn’t have that problem and they should have been back by now.

“Nathan’s here,” Maggie called out, shaking Peter from his thoughts.

Jogging to the front of the building just in time to see him land, Nathan did not look happy.

“We’ve got to talk,” he said, rushing towards his brother and pulling him back inside by his arm.

“What?” Peter asked, almost afraid to hear the answer. “Is he close? Did you see him?”

“Sylar is the least of our worries right now,” Nathan answered as Peter turned around to walk with him.

“Everything okay?” Maggie asked her voice full of concern.

“Fine,” Nathan said tersely. “Just peachy. Why don’t you go… I don’t know… somewhere. Pete and I have to talk.”

Maggie started to protest but Peter agreed, heading further inside with Nathan until they were completely alone.

“What is it?” Peter asked.

“The Order,” Nathan answered. “About fifty miles away. It looks like they are ready for an assault and they are definitely headed this way.”

Peter’s eyes went wide as he shook his head.

“Yes,” Nathan said to his unspoken denial. “Yes, Peter. It’s happening. A few hours at the most is all we’ll have.”

“How many?”

“I didn’t stop and count.”

“Estimate then,” Peter fired back.

“Not large,” Nathan answered. “About a hundred troops.”

“Okay, well there are over two hundred of us…”

“Two hundred civilians,” Nathan corrected. “We don’t have weapons for everyone here, and even if we did they’re not all trained. Even with powers, they’ve got the advantage. This wave, it’s only the initial assault. I guarantee they have more soldiers on the way.”

“Alright,” Peter said, “we’ve got to get everyone to City Hall. It’s a strong building, we’ll last longer there. We can decide once we’re inside...”

“Once we’re inside we won’t be coming out again,” Nathan interrupted. “It might be time to consider…”

“Surrender?” Peter questioned.

“What are our other options?” Nathan returned.

“Fight or retreat.”

“Retreat,” Nathan echoed. “What about that colony north of us? The one Hiro was heading to. Could we make it there?”

“What about Sylar?”

Nathan nodded.

“Who are we better prepared to go up against,” Peter continued.

“Neither.”

“That’s what I thought.”

“Okay,” Nathan said, “so we could surrender and hope the Order accepts that, try to escape up north and hope we don’t run into Sylar, or stay and fight against the Order and possibly Sylar at the same time.”

“None of that sounds good.”

“No,” Nathan agreed. “It doesn’t.”

“Alright,” Peter said decisively, “I need a favor. Hiro was supposed to be back already, he’s probably on his way, but…”

“Something else is wrong?”

“I’m not sure,” Peter admitted. “But I need you to find out. He went up north with Lauren and, we’re not entirely sure she can be trusted.”

“Why not? She seems pretty harmless, well, discounting that whole,” Nathan stopped, making an odd chopping motion with his hand.

“Well,” Peter sighed, “someone is feeding information to Primatech. The Order didn’t even know where we were and now they’re attacking? It makes…”

“And you think it’s her?” Nathan asked in complete disbelief. “That girl’s a mouse.”

“We think she might have been planted…”

“Oh no doubt that Primatech planted someone here,” Nathan interrupted, “but it wasn’t her. Anyone they sent in would have been here a lot longer.”

“Yeah, Beatrice and Albert…”

“No,” Nathan dismissed. “Not them. That’s not… Listen, Peter, you’re not thinking about this the right way. I agree, Primatech has a spy here. They probably have more than one, but it’s not going to be some slip of a girl like Lauren. First, she’s not old enough. Second, she’s not involved enough. Third, she hasn’t been here long enough.”

“But…”

“Hear me out,” Nathan said sharply. “Whoever it is would have been with Primatech from the beginning, more than five years ago. Five years ago this girl Lauren was probably starting college or something. They’d only use people they completely trust.”

“Alright,” Peter said with a nod. “But why couldn’t it have been Beatrice or Albert?”

“Do you really think they just walked out of New York on their own?”

“So, how does it work then?”

“Someone here had to be keeping tabs on them. That means someone who has been here a very long time, probably since the beginning or damn near then. It would be someone above suspicion. Someone who’s involved but not overtly. On the inside. Knows what’s happening but doesn’t appear to know too much.”

“That could be anyone,” Peter argued.

“No,” Nathan said with a stern shake of his head. “It isn’t. You were hear when this thing formed. From the beginning. Who was here with you?”

“Beatrice, Albert,” Peter said, trying to recall. “They were the first. Then Jacobs.”

“I think you can rule him out,” Nathan said quickly. “If he was spying for Primatech he certainly wouldn’t take on as much responsibility as he has.”

“Okay,” Peter said, sounding relieved. “Daniel.”

“Too paranoid. Twitchy. Next.”

“Marissa.”

“No,” Nathan said immediately. “It would be someone with a power. And again, too much responsibility.”

“Um,” Peter struggled, “that just leaves…”

Peter trailed off as it dawned on him exactly who was left.

From the look on Nathan’s face, he already knew the next name Peter was going to say; knew and agreed that they’d found the spy.

“So what do we do now?” Peter asked.

****

“Does this remind you of anything?”

Matt didn’t stop working, just gave D.L. a questioning glance.

“Anything at all?” D.L. said with an odd smile.

“Like what?”

“Like the Alamo.”

“Let’s not start,” Matt said with a laugh.

He knew it wasn’t funny, but it struck him that way nonetheless. After all, they had spent the better part of two hours boarding up windows, barricading doors and preparing for a standoff that it didn’t seem likely any of them would walk away from.

“Alamo?” Ando piped up.

“You’re better off not knowing,” Matt told him.

“Is this the last one?” D.L. asked as they put the finishing touches on their blockade.

“I hope so,” Matt returned.

“We did leave one door open, right?” Ando asked.

“The back one,” D.L. provided. “Jacobs and Peter are still at the Market, a few others too. Niki and Franco haven’t… they’re not back yet and I think Nathan went out again as well.”

“Hiro and Lauren,” Ando added. “They haven’t come back yet.”

“Alright,” Matt said, trying to keep not only himself but also his friends distracted, “what else can we do? Building is as secure as we can make it. What’s next?”

“Micah has set up communications,” D.L. supplied. “Mohinder might need help with the infirmary.”

“I’m going to go see if Claire needs help with the kids,” Ando said.

“Good idea,” Matt seconded. “Maybe I’ll see how Audrey is coming along.”

“I’m sure she’s got her hands full,” D.L. said. “I’ll come with you.”

The two of them said goodbye to Ando who was heading for the basement as they made their way upstairs to the make-shift armory.

For whatever reason Peter had suggested, pressed even, for Audrey to be in charge of the weapons until Niki’s return. It did make sense in a fashion; after Niki, Audrey was the best at handling a gun, but it had struck nearly everyone as strange.

“How’s it going in here?” D.L. called out as they entered the room.

“Hey, D.L.,” Audrey called from somewhere in the back of the room, “did Niki have some sort of system for this?”

“What do you mean?” he returned as both he and Matt followed her voice into the room.

“Like a log,” Audrey sighed. “Something that might indicate who has what and when and why.”

“Yes,” D.L. said with a faint smile.

“Where is it?”

“Well,” D.L. explained, “it’s really not much of a log or a system, so much as Niki would give you a gun when and if she felt you needed it.”

“That’s not helpful,” Audrey said with a blank look.

“Why does it matter?” Matt asked.

“Because Peter wants an inventory,” Audrey said, looking over the racks once more. “He wants them all accounted for and…”

“Why?” D.L. interrupted. “I mean, is now really the time for this? We’ve kind of got other things…”

Matt held up a hand, silencing them both momentarily before shutting the main door and returning back to them.

“Did he tell you why?” Matt asked Audrey in a lowered voice.

“No,” Audrey answered, unsure why the sudden suspicion. “Just that he needed to know…”

Audrey stopped at the realization.

“He must think someone has a gun that shouldn’t,” she said.

“Lauren?” D.L. suggested.

“No,” Audrey answered. “Why bother? She’s not here. She’s not an immediate threat.”

“So who is?” Matt asked.

****

Niki and Franco made it back to the Market just after sunset at about the same time as the helicopters began to circle the city and the storm really began to pick up outside.

“Peter?” Niki called out as they ran through the hall.

“Good,” he said as he came out of the meeting hall, “you both made it.”

“Have you seen what’s going on outside?” she asked. “Are those copters from the Order?”

“Yeah,” he confirmed. “We’ve got everyone holed up at City Hall. You two better…”

“What about you?” Niki cut him off mid-sentence.

“I’m waiting on Nathan.”

“We’ll wait with you,” Franco offered.

“No,” Peter said firmly. “He shouldn’t be much longer. You two have already risked enough.”

“Peter,” Niki said shaking her head, “no. Not this time. You don’t get to martyr yourself twice.”

“Niki…”

“Don’t Niki me,” she said in a tone that meant she would accept no refusal. “Are you the only one here?”

“Yeah but…”

“We’re staying with you.”

“Okay, but…”

Before Peter finished his handheld radio beeped.

“What?” he asked into it.

“Peter,” Jacobs’s voice said over the wire, “we’ve got a situation.”  


  
**Chapter 13: Situation**

All the lights were off and the majority of the people were in the basement. From his vantage point the streets were quiet and deserted, and that was how Matt hoped they stayed. It wasn’t exactly easy to tell in all this rain, but he could see well enough. A few helicopters in the distance told him that the Order was indeed getting closer, but they hadn’t found them yet.

For the moment they were safe.

Safe except for the fact that someone inside, locked up with them, was a traitor. And probably armed. And probably waiting for their chance to take action.

There had been no time to investigate it further. D.L., Audrey and Matt assumed Peter knew who it was and that had to be enough for now. All they could do was keep an eye out, which given they were also supposed to keep an eye out on the streets, wasn’t an easy thing to accomplish.

“Matt,” D.L. said is a low whisper from a few feet away, “do you see that?”

“Is that a person?” Matt asked in return, staring down at the street.

“I think so,” D.L. answered. “And they’re in a hurry. Heading towards the Market I think.”

“It’s not Nathan, is it?”

“No,” D.L. said, “too small. Not Sylar either.”

“Scout for the Order?”

“I don’t…”

D.L. trailed off, straining to catch a better look before the person was completely out of sight.

“We should radio Peter,” Matt suggested. “Let him know they’re about to get company. Just in case.”

“Yeah. That’s a good idea.”

But neither Matt nor D.L. moved just yet. The person, whoever they were had stopped not far away from the building. It was too dark to make out their features, but they were close. Too close.

“I think that’s…” D.L. had begun to say but stopped when Matt had nearly collapsed in pain.

Matt hadn’t meant to do it, hadn’t realized what he was doing until it was too late. His powers were passive after all, and it wasn’t so much a matter of him trying to read the thoughts of the person on the street below but that that person was projecting so loudly, was so terrified, he couldn’t help but pick them up.

_‘ … keep moving … going … too close … too strong.’_

“Matt?” D.L. said as he rushed over. “What happened? What…”

“Accident,” Matt just managed as he sunk to the floor clasping his head in his hands. “Couldn’t… Couldn’t help it.”

“Okay,” D.L. said, backing towards the door. “I’m going to get Claire and Mohinder. I’ll be right back.”

Matt shut his eyes tight once more and couldn’t believe this was happening; that this was actually happening right now at what might be the worst possible moment.

And the pain was worse than before.

Matt knew he might be imagining it, but the pain felt more intense this time than it had the last.

He wasn’t sure if he could stand it for long.

Audrey and Jacobs were the first two in the room with him.

She came over and sat down beside him immediately. Audrey didn’t speak; she only put her arm across his back and pulled him to her. Jacobs stepped into the farthest corner and began to speak into his radio.

“Peter,” he said, “we’ve got a situation.”

“Take that out of here,” Audrey said in a hurried whisper.

“What’s that?” Peter’s voice came back across the line, filling the room and causing Matt to wince.

“Sorry,” Jacobs said as he stepped back out into the hall again.

“Jacobs?” Peter repeated.

“Sorry,” he said into the radio. “We’ve got a situation. It’s Matt. Whatever that thing is in his head it’s acting up again.”

“What are you doing for him?”

“I’m not sure what we can do,” Jacobs admitted. “Micah may have to short it out.”

“Are you sure? What will that do?”

Jacobs didn’t have an answer.

“Okay,” Peter’s voice returned. “Just keep us in the loop. Alright?”

“Will do.”

There was a pause. Jacobs knew Peter was still on the line, debating what to say next and how to say it.

“What about the other situation?” Peter finally asked.

“It’s being… looked into,” Jacobs finished vaguely.

“Good.”

“Over on this side.”

“Over,” Peter echoed.

Jacobs looked up just in time to see Claire and Mohinder coming his way.

“Is he inside?” Claire asked, her hand already on the door.

“Yes,” Jacobs told her. “Where’s D.L.?”

“Looking for Micah,” Mohinder answered as he followed Claire into the room.

Claire sat down on the other side of Matt and put her hand on his neck again, but after a moment or two Matt shrugged her off.

“Why did… ”

“It’s not helping,” he said through clenched teeth. “It’s only…”

He couldn’t finish, merely choked on the remaining words.

Matt was trying to tell her, as best he could, that whatever it was inside of him was actually adjusting to her touch; overcompensating for it. That the more she tried to heal it now, the worse it became. He didn’t want to offend her, hurt her, but Matt couldn’t take it anymore. It was taking everything he had at the moment to keep from passing out, and Claire’s attempt at healing were just making that harder to do.

Claire looked slightly mortified at the insinuation, but backed away nonetheless.

“Alright,” Mohinder said, “maybe you all should…”

“I’m not leaving,” Audrey said immediately.

“Neither am I,” Claire added.

“Ladies…”

“Go,” Matt said loudly. “Both of you. Now. Go.”

“Matt…” Audrey began to protest but he was already shaking his head.

“Just Mohinder and Micah,” he barely got out. “Please.”

“Come on,” Jacobs said, opening the door.

Audrey and Claire both reluctantly left the room, waiting just outside in the hallway with Jacobs. D.L. arrived with Micah a few moments later and, as requested, the young man went in alone.

“Do you want us to…”

“Yes,” Matt quickly interrupted Mohinder. “Shut it off. I don’t care. I know the risks. Do it. I’m going to go crazy with this… thing inside me.”

“Matt, I don’t know…”

“Micah,” Matt nearly pleaded.

“Okay,” he said, crouching down next to him. “Where’s it hurt the most?”

“Here,” Matt said, indicating the spot on the back of his neck.

Micah nodded and put his hand there, immediately feeling the active circuitry inside of him. It took a few seconds to navigate the correct path, to find the kill switch, but once he did Micah hesitated. He was terrified that he might be mistaken again. That he might be making it worse. Double checking all of the connections, Micah knew he had to do it. He had to trust his own instincts.

“Did it work?”

“I think so,” Matt answered, feeling completely drained of all his energy. “The pain is gone, but…”

“Can you hear what we’re thinking?” Mohinder asked, coming closer to where the other two sat.

“Give me a second,” Matt said, wanting to steady himself just in case the pain returned. Realizing that if it did it was probably going to be worse.

“Ready?” Mohinder asked after a pause.

“Okay,” Matt said taking a deep breath. “Just don’t think too loudly.”

Mohinder smiled and gave him a nod.

Mohinder and Micah watched intently as Matt briefly shut his eyes.

“Well?” Micah asked, beginning to worry he’d messed it up again.

“Wow,” Matt said softly.

“What?” Mohinder asked quickly, concerned.

“The two of you both thought the same thing at nearly the same time,” Matt said with a small laugh. “Did you plan that or what?”

Mohinder let out a nervous laugh, relieved that it was okay; Micah smiled, visibly relaxed.

“No problems?” Mohinder questioned.

“None,” Matt said with a slight shake of his head. “I heard you both loud and clear and completely unbroken. I think it’s fixed.”

“That’s great,” Mohinder exclaimed.

“Wait a minute,” Micah said, “I’m glad it’s working too, but I think we still might have to take that chip out.”

“Chip?” Matt said.

“Yeah,” Micah nodded. “It’s right below the skin, probably another injection, but it’s dangerous. They can reactivate it remotely. I could only temporarily shut it down. I can’t kill it. I tried, I can’t.”

“What else?” Matt asked, knowing there was more.

“It’s incremental, which you know,” Micah said. “Each time it turns on, it amps up the… well, whatever it is doing to you. The pain. They can turn it on again any minute now. Turn it up as high as they want to. For all I know it resets itself. It has to come out.”

“What do you think?” Matt asked Mohinder.

“I defer to Micah,” he said with a nod. “He knows better than I do what that thing is. I’m sure you don’t want it on again, do you?”

“No,” Matt said without hesitation.

“Dad can do it,” Micah said with a brisk nod. “I’ll show him right where it is. It’ll be just like the tracking device in your neck. Quick. I swear.”

“Let’s just do it,” Matt said decisively. “Before I change my mind or forget what’s happening, alright? We’ve got bigger problems than me right now.”

Micah nodded, getting to his feet and stepping briefly into the hallway.

D.L. came back with him a moment later looking slightly apprehensive.

“Better?” he asked tentatively.

“Much,” Matt answered, “thanks to your son. He’s a real lifesaver.”

“He gets that from me,” D.L. said with a smirk. “So what’s this I’m supposed to do?”

“Here,” Micah said, moving towards Matt and motioning for him to turn around. “It’s right here. It’s small, circular and about a centimeter in diameter.”

D.L. pressed cautiously on the back of Matt’s neck, trying to get a feel for what he needed to do.

“Hold still,” he said.

“Just tell me when,” Matt returned.

D.L. took a small breath in and was ready.

“Now.”

Matt shut his eyes but after the pain caused by the device, the removal of it was nothing. It hurt, but only like a pinch; like an injection would.

“Done?” he asked.

“Yeah,” D.L. said, patting him on the shoulder.

Mohinder and Matt both moved to take a look at the object D.L. had in his hand.

It was small, perfectly round and an odd shade of green; it looked like a shot pellet.

Matt wiped the back of his neck, not surprised to find a small bit of blood. It had been like that with the tracking device as well.

“Here,” D.L. said, offering the device to Mohinder. “You’ll probably want to take a closer look at that.”

“Most definitely.”

“Can I let everyone else in now?” Micah asked. “They weren’t really happy…”

“Go ahead,” Matt said, still a bit weak but feeling tremendously better than he had before.

Micah went to the door, opening it for the three who had remained outside.

“Are you done?” Audrey asked tentatively. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes,” Matt said with a quick nod. “All better. Well, relatively better.”

“Does that mean you can hear us again?” Claire asked.

Matt nodded again with a small smile before it dawned on him.

“That girl!” he said loudly.

Everyone looked surprised by the outburst and more than a little worried; like something had gone wrong with him.

“What are you talking about?” Audrey asked.

“D.L.,” Matt continued on as he moved towards the window, “on the street. She’s what I heard. She was in trouble. Running from someone. I think she was running from Sylar.”

“Why do you say that?” Jacobs asked trying to sound as calm as he could.

“I didn’t catch everything,” Matt tried to explain. “I wasn’t even trying to hear her, but she said something about ‘close’ and ‘strong’… ‘too strong’. It has to be it. She was terrified. I got that much.”

“She was headed for the Market,” D.L. added quickly, realizing the danger. “That’s where Peter is. Where Niki and Franco are. We’ve got to warn them. Go and help…”

“Calm down,” Jacobs said, raising one hand gently as he used the other to reach for his radio. “I’ll get Peter on the line and we’ll take it from there.”

D.L. and Matt both nodded, watching intently as Jacobs pressed the call button.

“Peter,” he said into the receiver. “Are you there? Peter, pick up. It’s urgent.”

There was no answer.

“Peter,” Jacobs repeated, growing worried.

“Maybe he put it down?” Claire suggested hopefully. “Set it down…”

She didn’t finish. Claire knew that Peter wouldn’t do that. Not right now. Not when it was so important that they all keep in contact with one another.

Jacobs looked at Matt significantly and he heard him loud and clear.

_‘Something’s wrong.’_  



	10. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 14: Myth**

“What about the other situation?” Peter asked, avoiding the curious expression on both Niki and Franco’s faces.

“It’s being… looked into,” Jacobs’s voice returned vaguely.

“Good,” Peter said, nodding and feeling relieved that at least one thing was still under control.

“Over on this side,” Jacobs said.

“Over,” Peter echoed.

“What happened to Matt?” Niki asked as soon as Peter set the radio down.

“A lot,” Peter sighed. “Too much. He’s having these sort of episodes. It’s a long story.”

“We’ve got time,” Franco said. “Don’t we? Exactly when is Nathan supposed to be back?”

“Hours ago,” Peter admitted. “He was supposed to just go and check on the colony in New Hampshire. Explain the situation to them and come right back. I was thinking we might be able to organize a convoy and head that way if we had to.”

“Fight our way out?” Niki questioned.

“If it came to it,” Peter said with a nod. “We have the cars for it, the supplies. Got some people working on it just in case, but…”

Niki and Franco both nodded. No one wanted it to come down to that.

“It’ll take the Order some time to track down exactly where we are,” Niki said after a brief pause. “Boston isn’t exactly a small town. There are lots of places we can hide. Lots of places for them to check. And if those helicopters are any indication, they aren’t even close yet.”

“Or they don’t want us to think they are,” Peter returned.

“Now you’re just being paranoid,” Niki said with a faint smile.

“Maybe,” Peter said with a laugh. “Can you blame me?”

“Not really.”

The three of them sat in the near darkness, unable to risk turning on too many lights. It was safer that way; safer from the Order and safer from Sylar.

“I hope this rain lets up,” Franco mumbled under his breath.

“I don’t,” Niki returned. “It’s good cover.”

Franco nodded and was about to say something more when a loud noise from the back of the building startled the three of them.

“What was that?” Peter asked, straining to see in the dark.

“Sounded like a door,” Niki said, moving to stand in front of him.

Franco hushed them both.

They could hear footsteps, hurried footsteps echoing down the long corridor that was Quincy Hall.

“Peter!”

“Was that…” Niki had started to ask, but too late.

Peter had already dashed around her at the sound of his brother’s voice calling for him. Running in an oddly familiar fashion down a corridor he’d traveled many times, both awake and asleep, towards Nathan’s continued calls.

“Wait!” Niki yelled out after him, right behind him but not quite fast enough to catch up.

Peter slid to a halt in the center of the Market, in nearly the same place he’d found Audrey a few nights before.

Nathan was turning those same slow circles, carrying something in his arms, and wearing a frantic look on his face that Peter had never seen.

“Nathan,” he called back, his voice surprisingly tight. “What’s…”

Nathan stopped and faced him and it was clear. He wasn’t carrying something, but someone.

And it was her.

It was that same woman from his dreams, only this time she was in Nathan’s arms; sopping wet the way she’d always appeared and ghostly white.

Nathan knelt down, setting her on the ground as Peter rushed over to them both.

“She’s the only one left,” Nathan said, his breath hitching from obvious exhaustion. “The whole colony, Peter. They’re all dead. They had six like us. She’s the only one that he didn’t… He either missed her or didn’t care. Caught wind of us. Got bored. Who knows…”

“What are you talking about?” Peter asked, unable to take his eyes off the woman lying on the floor between them.

“Sylar,” Nathan practically yelled. “Peter, pull yourself together. I’m talking about Sylar. He killed them all. There were nearly a hundred of them. Gone. All gone. She’s all that’s left.”

“How?” Niki asked, surprising Nathan who hadn’t even registered her presence.

“I don’t know how,” he shot back at her. “Hiro and Lauren…”

“Are they…”

“No,” Nathan said, shaking his head vigorously. “They were there when I arrived. Searching for survivors. They’d just found her and she told them where he was headed. That she’d seen it, had been trying to warn you. Reach out…”

“She was,” Peter nodded. “I just didn’t… I couldn’t understand her. I’ve been having dreams…”

“No time,” Nathan interrupted. “He’ll be here. Soon. He may be here already. Hiro isn’t? He’s not here yet?”

“No,” Franco answered. “Unless he’s at the Hall.”

“He’d have come here first,” Peter said quickly.

“He should be here now,” Nathan added adamantly. “They were time stopping to travel. They should have beaten me here.”

“Unless they ran into trouble,” Niki said bluntly.

“Okay,” Peter said, getting to his feet. “Nathan, can you make another trip?”

“Not far,” he said shaking his head.

“Just to City Hall,” Peter assured him. “Take her there, get her looked after. Warn Jacobs. Warn them all that Sylar is close. Do everything you can and…”

Peter didn’t have to say that last part. Nathan knew.

Watch after Claire.

“Alright,” Nathan said, taking the woman back into his arms and striding towards the front door.

“What about us?” Franco asked. “What are we going to do?”

“First,” Peter said, “we find Hiro and we find Lauren. We get everyone back to the Hall and then…”

Peter stopped as he heard a loud noise coming from not too far off. It wasn’t an explosion, but definitely a collapse of some sort. Loud. Very loud.

The three of them rushed out the side door and saw the billowing remains a building less than a block away.

“Was that him?” Franco asked.

“No,” Peter answered. “I think it was Lauren.”

****

They were exhausted.

Hiro and Lauren had raced as fast as humanly possible back to Boston, stopping only once they had reached the Public Garden.

“I’ve got to restart time,” Hiro panted. “I can’t hold it much longer. It’s been too long already.”

“Do it,” Lauren said, bent at the waist with her hands on her knees. She wasn’t sure she could go on much further, period. “We’re almost there. We had to have gained some time on him. Right?”

“I hope so,” Hiro said, looking around as the world moved with them once more.

Lauren scanned the grounds as well. She used to love this part of the city. She’d come here and sit on the grass to study and just hang out with her friends back when the world was normal. That seemed like it was a lifetime ago.

“What’s that noise?” she asked, straightening up and straining to hear better.

“It sounds like…” Hiro started but didn’t finish.

They both spotted it at the same time.

A helicopter.

“That can’t be good,” Lauren said as it wheeled around on them, spot light on.

She had half a second to react, but she did it.

Lauren threw up her hands as the men in the gunner’s seat opened fire, creating a small but powerful force field between them and the weapon.

Still, when the bullets bounced off, she flinched. Lauren always flinched; she’d never get used to this.

“I tried to stop it…” Hiro began.

“You’re too tired,” Lauren interrupted, swiveling around to mimic the helicopters movement; blocking them from trying another angle. “Let me do this.”

“For how long?” Hiro asked. “You can’t hold that up forever. We have to get away.”

“You go,” Lauren said resolutely. “You can stop for yourself. Go. Get to the Market. I can handle this.”

“Lauren, I’m not going to leave you. A hero doesn’t…”

“You are a hero,” Lauren returned quickly. “That’s why you have to go. You have to warn them. They have to be prepared.”

“I can’t abandon you.”

“You’re not abandoning me,” she protested. “I can take care of myself. And one of us has to warn the others about Sylar. I can’t. You can.”

“But…”

“We don’t have time for arguments,” Lauren said, still tracking the helicopter even though it had backed off slightly. “We’re wasting time we don’t have.”

Hiro looked at her very seriously for a moment.

“I’ll be back for you.”

“I know,” she said with a nod.

“Don’t do too much damage,” he said, smiling a bit.

“I’ll try.”

Hiro nodded once more and then was gone.

There was no time to contemplate it, and even if Lauren knew Hiro would be true to his word, she couldn’t afford to sit back and wait for him.

As soon as the helicopter got close enough she did what she had to do. Lauren pushed out the force field until it rubbed up against the helicopter and effectively knocked it off balance.

She hadn’t downed it, only disrupted it; it was all she needed.

Once the helicopter was no longer paying her any attention, she bolted.

Lauren knew crossing the Common was probably a mistake, but she wasn’t concerned so much with being seen as she was with escaping. Hiro had gone to the Market to get help and that’s where she needed to head as well; as quickly as she possibly could. Besides, the rain would likely keep her from being spotted from the air. The only reason that helicopter had even seen them in the first place was because they’d popped out practically underneath it.

Racing up hill towards Beacon Street, Lauren began to slow down as an eerie sensation crept up on her. Stopping a hundred yards or more from the edge of the Common, she turned around and saw why.

Sylar.

Lauren had never been one to question his existence. She’d always believed. She used to wonder how a person, given all that has happened, given what some could do, could question it at all.

Maybe it was easier to believe that men like this didn’t exist.

Right now, Lauren wished that was true.

Again, it was split second timing that saved her.

The first tree came hurtling at her on the right, the next on the left. She’d thrown up her hands once more, deflecting the blows and walking backwards as he began to move forwards towards her.

The closer he got the more panicked she became.

There was only one thing she could do.

Pushing with all of her might, mentally willing the field she’d summoned forward, she willed it towards him as fast as she possible could.

It did all she could hope for, pushed him back a good hundred feet before dissolving, knocking him over in the process and giving her the opportunity to make a break for it.

She didn’t dare look back.

Lauren’s legs were trembling, but still she ran. She ran up the rest of the hill, east onto Beacon Street and then up Tremont.

She had to slow down as she neared City Hall. There was no choice. Her whole body ached from fatigue. Lauren knew she was never going to make it.

Stopping momentarily to rest, Lauren felt helpless.

She knew that she had to keep moving. Too keep going. He was just too close behind her; too strong.

The good news was she was close to Faneuil Hall. It was only about a city block away at this point, but that wasn’t close enough. It wasn’t nearly close enough.

But she wouldn’t allow herself to stop.

Picking her pace back up, Lauren began to run for it once more. She’d almost made it to Congress when Sylar seemed to appear out of nowhere in front of her.

Once more she tried to throw a force field at him, but this time he anticipated the move and deflected it back at her. Lauren blocked it but felt her power fading. She had one last thing to try and if it didn’t work…

Lauren began taking very hesitant, very measured steps backwards, still trembling with fear.

Sylar sensing that, sensing her defeat, advanced.

She’d done it. Lauren had backed herself up against a wall. There were no more options. This was it. She took a deep breath and waited.

Sylar came closer and closer with a sick smile on his face.

This was it.

“You have something I want.”

One more step and Lauren did what she had to do.

Starting from the ground up, she created as strong of a field as she could. It reached up over her head and into the building behind her slicing off the top corner at an angle and sending it sliding down towards Sylar and the street.

Watching the rubble crash down on top of him was a little satisfying, but Lauren wasn’t going to delude herself into believing that’s all it would take to stop him. As soon as it had stopped falling, as soon as it had cleared, she pushed the field out and cleared herself a path of escape, heavily scratching her leg in the process.

Lauren didn’t care. A scraped leg was a relief considering the other possibilities.

This was her last chance to escape.

Breaking into a full run towards the Market; it wasn’t an opportunity she was going to waste.  



	11. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 15: Prophet**

Once time had stopped Hiro climbed Tremont Street, past City Hall, and through Government Center on his way to Faneuil Hall.

He was just across the street from the Market when he noticed that the rain was actually falling, albeit slowly, around him; that time was no longer stopped, only slowed down.

Breaking into a run despite his fatigue, Hiro ran to the hotel and living quarters of the colony hoping Peter was still there. He realized that having stopped several times to rest, to give them and his powers a break in the course of their trip home, Nathan had probably already arrived.

Hiro hoped he had.

By the time he entered the lobby Hiro could no longer control it. Time had started back at full speed and Hiro couldn’t stop it, and there were only two explanations. Either Hiro was exhausted past the point of using his ability or it was destiny.

Hiro had come to accept that there were some events he could not stop. That sometimes people were meant to die, certain events had to transpire, and that basically destiny could not be stopped even by a man who could halt time.

He’d tried to explain it to Claire once when she’d asked him, begged even, to go back to that day in New York and warn Peter, warn her, warn anyone of what was about to happen that it wasn’t as if he didn’t want to do it, he couldn’t do it. Hiro had tried, really tried to help, but it wouldn’t work.

Hiro hoped that this time it was just the exhaustion.

Satisfied that the hotel was empty, Hiro next ran outside towards the Market. The Market however was completely dark and he began to wonder if perhaps they had all gone to City Hall after all.

There was no time to hesitate, but Hiro couldn’t decide if he should spend another fifteen, maybe twenty minutes even, checking every part of the Market looking for anyone who might be left, or return to City Hall where he was positive he’d at least find some of the colony.

If the Market hadn’t been so dark, Hiro might have gone to check it out. If he was still able to take all the time he needed, he certainly would have done it. But that wasn’t the case. Making up his mind he began to run back through Government Center and towards City Hall.

Once he’d reached the building it took several minutes to find the appropriate entrance, the majority of them being blocked.

“Who’s there?” a voice called out to him.

“It’s Hiro,” he returned, nearly out of breath.

“Come in,” Daniel said, hurrying out to greet him. “You’re getting soaked. Why were you outside?”

“No time to explain,” Hiro panted. “Is Peter here?”

“No,” he answered. “He’s still at the Market.”

“What? No, I was just there. All of the…”

That’s when it dawned on him. Of course the buildings were dark; they didn’t want to attract attention.

“Oh no,” he sighed, shaking his head.

“Jacobs is here,” Daniel provided. “I think he’s upstairs.”

“Good,” Hiro said with a short nod. “I’ll tell him. Then we can go after Peter.”

“Should I do…”

“No,” Hiro interrupted. “I’ve got it under control, I hope. Are all the doors being watched?”

“Yes,” Daniel answered. “This is the only one open. You know the Order…”

“Yes,” Hiro replied. “Nathan told us. And they’re close. There are helicopters nearby so…”

“I’ll stay ready,” he finished for him.

“Good,” Hiro said with a smile before heading down the hallway.

He’d almost reached the stairs when a familiar voice called out to him. Turning Hiro saw Ando and Maggie coming towards him.

“Where have you been?” Ando asked. “We expected you back hours ago.”

“No time to explain,” Hiro said, motioning for them both to follow him up the stairs.

“Did you get a chance to warn them all?” Maggie asked, following just behind the two men.

“Some, yes,” Hiro said. “Others… it was too late.”

“Wait,” Ando said, stopping Hiro by taking hold of his arm. “Where’s Lauren? Did she stay at the Market or…”

“That’s why I have to hurry.”

“Hurry? Wait, what’s happened?” Ando asked beginning to sound frantic.

Hiro stopped halfway up the steps and tried to be as reassuring as he could.

“She’s fine. We ran into a slight problem not far away. She’ll be here soon. I’m sure of it.”

“What kind of problem?” Maggie asked.

“The Order,” Hiro reluctantly answered.

“But she’s…”

“She’s fine,” Hiro repeated, climbing the steps once more.

It took some searching but finally they found Jacobs and company on the third floor.

“Is everything alright?” Jacobs asked immediately, despite being in the middle of a conversation of his own. “Did you come from the Market?”

“No and yes,” Hiro answered. “The Order is close. Lauren and I ran into one of their helicopters near the Common. I went to the Market first but saw no lights… it was a stupid mistake. I should have checked…”

“We can’t reach Peter on the radio,” D.L. interrupted him. “We think it may be Sylar.”

“Sylar is on his way,” Hiro confirmed. “That’s why it took us so long. He’d been to the colony. Had destroyed… killed everyone. There was one survivor and Nathan… Nathan should be here too.”

“Alright,” Matt said. “What are we going to do?”

“I need to go back after Lauren,” Hiro said firmly. “She is either still at the Common or on her way to the Market.”

“Well you can’t check both places alone,” D.L. said. “We’ll go out in teams. One team can go to the Common, one to the Market. I’d like to volunteer to lead the team to the Market, Jacobs.”

“Who do you want to go with you?” Jacobs asked in return.

“Audrey,” he said resolutely, surprising both her and Matt.

_‘No offense, man, but you are needed here.’_

Matt nodded slightly at D.L. to indicate he’d heard him.

“Audrey?” Jacobs said to her.

“Okay,” she nodded.

“Hiro,” Jacobs continued. “I assume you’ll want to head the other team, if you’re up to it.”

“Yes,” he nodded. “And I like Ando to come with me.”

Ando nodded in agreement, ready to go.

“Well,” Audrey said, “we should go armed so...”

“Mohinder! Claire! Where are you?”

They all turned at the sound of Daniel’s voice echoing down the hallway.

“We’re in here,” Mohinder called back, stepping outside the door. “What’s wrong?”

“Nathan’s back,” Daniel blurted out. “He’s got a woman with him. She’s hurt.”

“Where at?” Claire asked.

“He’s taken her to the infirmary. I said I’d get you both and be right back. She looks bad.”

“Is it anyone…”

“No,” Hiro interrupted. “She’s from the colony up north. Did Nathan say if he’d been to the Market?”

“Just returned,” Daniel said with a nod.

“Thank you, Daniel,” Mohinder said. “We’ll be right there.”

Daniel didn’t stick around, just ran back the way he’d came with Claire and Mohinder not far behind him.

“I still want to go,” D.L. said decisively.

“I agree,” Jacobs said. “Bring them back here as quickly as possible. Everyone. Understood?”

The two teams left with out another word leaving Jacobs, Matt, Micah and Maggie alone in the room.

_‘Do not tell her you have your power back.’_

Matt had heard Jacobs and that confirmed it for him. D.L., Audrey and Matt had reached the general consensus that Maggie was the spy, not Lauren, and that Jacobs and Peter had recently become aware of it themselves. And Matt understood exactly why Jacobs wouldn’t want Maggie to know he could read her thoughts again. If she didn’t know she might give something away.

“I’m going to go check the radios,” Micah said after a pause. “See if I can reach my mom.”

“Good idea,” Jacobs said with a smile as the young man left the room.

“What about the armory?” Maggie asked. “With Audrey gone someone will have to look after it.”

“I hadn’t thought of that,” Jacobs lied. “We’ll need to make sure everyone is armed, ready for any attack that might take place. Matt?”

Matt shook his head in a distracted manner that he hoped wasn’t overdone.

“Huh?”

 _‘They really messed him up,’_ he heard clearly from Maggie.

“Oh,” Matt said, “yeah, we will. Audrey had already made sure most of the guards were equipped. I’m not sure what else would need to be done, you know, unless it gets worse.”

“I agree,” Jacobs said. “We can wait. I’ll give you the word, Maggie, if we need reinforcements.”

“Good,” she said, sounding a bit forced.

“Now, if you will both excuse me,” Jacobs continued, “I need to bring Marissa up to speed.”

Matt and Maggie both watched him go and for a few minutes were completely silent.

“How are you feeling?” Maggie finally asked, her expression neutral.

“Okay.”

“Any more of those head splitting pains?” she continued to prod, keeping her tone light.

“No,” Matt answered somewhat honestly. “They’re gone for now. I think Mohinder was right, as long as I don’t try and use my power, I don’t have any problems.”

“Well,” Maggie said with a bit of humor, “except you can’t use your power. That is a problem, isn’t it?”

“It’s an adjustment, but I’m getting used to it.”

“I don’t know what I’d do without my power,” Maggie admitted. “It’d be like losing an arm, I imagine.”

“You must have more control over yours than I ever did of mine,” Matt said, continuing to play along; not sure where she was headed with this.

_‘Weak.’_

“Not always,” she said. “It took me some time to figure out how to master it.”

“I guess I never really did.”

_‘Liar.’_

“Really?” she asked skeptically.

“It could be overpowering at times,” Matt said, trying hard not to let on that he could hear her thoughts; wondering if she might be goading him intentionally to see if he could. “Too many people in a room and it was sometimes hard to tell who was thinking what and who was speaking. I don’t miss that.”

“I never thought of that,” Maggie returned. “Must have been difficult.”

_‘It must be hard to be useless.’_

“Like I said,” Matt returned, trying hard not to react to what he’d just heard, “it’s an adjustment.”

“You’re certainly handling it well,” Maggie said with a fake smile. “Like I told you, I’d have lost it completely.”

_‘He really can’t hear me.’_

“I have had some time to get used to it,” Matt said.

****

Claire and Mohinder met Nathan in the infirmary, the woman he’d brought in already laid out on the nearest available bed.

“What happened to her?” Mohinder asked.

“I think it might be shock,” Nathan told them.

“Are you okay?” Claire asked him.

Nathan was soaked from head to toe and actually shivering.

“I’m fine,” he assured her.

“You should go get changed,” Claire advised. “We’ve got it from here.”

“No,” Nathan hesitated. “I’d rather…”

“Go,” Mohinder ordered. “You can come right back. We’ll be fine.”

Nathan took one last look at the woman and then at Claire before finally agreeing.

“She should be changed too,” Mohinder said a bit uneasily as he looked down at the unconscious woman. “Do you think…”

“I’ll take care of it,” Claire finished for him. “Why don’t you go get some more blankets? She’s freezing.”

Mohinder nodded and left to do just that.

Claire changed the woman into something much drier, surprised when Nathan returned before Mohinder did.

“That was quick,” she commented, still checking the woman’s temperature.

“You forget who you’re talking to,” Nathan said easily, sitting down next to the bed.

Claire managed a small chuckle.

“How was Peter?” she asked.

“Good,” Nathan answered. “They were going to go look for Hiro and Lauren I think. Bring them…”

“What?” Claire interrupted. “No. Oh, man. Hiro was just here. D.L. and Audrey just went out after them. This is just such…”

“A mess?”

“Exactly,” Claire agreed. “I just wish everyone would come back here and stay in one place…”

“So we can die together?”

“Don’t be so pessimistic,” she scolded.

“That’s not pessimism,” Nathan countered. “That’s logic. Between the Order and Sylar, what do you expect to happen?”

“You never know,” Claire said quietly.

“No,” Nathan agreed, “I don’t.”

Claire said nothing in return, just continued to look after the woman before her. Placing a hand gently on her forehead Claire jumped when the woman’s eyes opened and she gasped.

Nathan was at her side in a split second.

The woman looked around her, clearly confused.

“Do you remember me?” Nathan asked hesitantly. “Do you remember…”

“He came,” she said in a rather frightened voice. “He came and destroyed it. He…”

“It’s okay,” Claire said. “He’s not here…”

“Yes he is,” the woman interrupted. “He’s here now. It’s destiny, doesn’t anyone understand that? You can’t control destiny.”

“Do you have a sedative or something you can give her?” Nathan asked Claire quietly.

Claire only hushed him.

“He isn’t going to stop until someone…” the woman said, her eyes beginning to take on the same milky white color Isaac’s used to when he painted. “He knows what he wants and it’s here. Who he wants is here. He left me behind because…”

She seemed to shake herself out of it, her eyes clearing as her head seemed to as well.

“Where am I?” she asked as if seeing them both properly for the first time.

“Boston,” Claire told her. “Nathan brought you here. Do you remember it? Any of it?”

“I don’t want to remember it.”

“Do you remember your name?” Nathan asked.

“Deborah.”

“She’s awake,” Mohinder said, joining them in the room. “How are you feeling?”

“We’re all in danger,” Deborah said instead of answering him.

“Okay,” Mohinder said, not understanding what was going on in the slightest.

“You should have left me,” Deborah said turning to Nathan. “You should have left me and never came back to this place. It’s full of snakes, hiding in the shadows. It’s a trap. It’s… It’s…suffocating…. Closing in and choking…”

“Now might be the time for that sedative I’d mentioned,” Nathan repeated to Claire.

This time she nodded. Deborah was becoming increasingly agitated, shifting in her seat and looking about her in a distracted manner.

She might have the power of foresight, but she was nearing hysterics and they couldn’t allow that.

“I’ve got it,” Mohinder said, already preparing an injection to give her. “This might sting a bit.”

As soon as he took hold of her arm she calmed down; stared at him.

“They’ll take you first.”  



	12. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 16: Reunion**

Her leg slowed her down more than she’d have liked. Lauren was running much slower now, worn out to the extreme, and getting no where fast.

Lauren was half a block away when she heard the building collapse.

Knowing she hadn’t damaged it enough for that to happen on its own, it could only be Sylar’s doing.

Hurrying as best as she could, not daring to look back, Lauren continued to run through the rain towards her final destination.

The Market was so close.

It gave her renewed energy. Hope. Lauren could see familiar buildings now and it gave her hope that she might actually make it.

That hope didn’t last long.

The first brick flew straight over her head, missing by mere inches.

The second one hit her square in the back, toppling Lauren over.

Lauren cried out in pain as she struggled back to her feet, determined to keep going. Escape was the only option. Finding Peter, finding help; it was all she could do.

Three more bricks flew around her and she knew he was gaining ground; that he was toying with her.

Lauren threw a shield up blindly behind her, pushing it towards him with as much strength as she could.

It did nothing, not even slowing him in the slightest.

The next brick hit her right shoulder. The brick after that hit the back of her left knee.

She couldn’t run anymore.

She staggered forward a few steps more before finally slowing to a stop. The pain was too much. There was no point in trying to go on.

As the last brick hit Lauren in the back of the head, bright patches of light swam before her eyes as she hit the ground.

This was it.

****

Hiro and Ando had wasted no time returning the Common.

What they found there was disturbing.

“What did this?” Ando asked, observing the torn up trees that littered the lawn.

“More like who,” Hiro said softly.

Ando didn’t want to consider it, but knew Hiro was right. Sylar was the only one who could have done this. He was the only known telekinetic among them and the only one strong enough to cause this much damage.

Sylar had been here with Lauren.

The two of them scanned the entire area without success. There was no sign of Lauren, of Sylar, or even of the helicopter Hiro had encountered before.

Just destruction.

“She must have gotten away,” Hiro concluded. “Made a break for it towards the Market.”

“Then let’s hurry,” Ando said, already moving in that direction. “She might not be far off. She’ll need help.”

“Ando,” Hiro called after him, “we have to be careful. We…”

But Ando was already running, not listening to what his friend was trying to say to him.

Too worried that the worst had already happened.

****

Audrey had only wished there had been time for a proper goodbye; any goodbye, but there wasn’t. She and D.L. had to hurry. With any luck they’d be back in under an hour with everyone relatively safe inside City Hall.

Not that they’d ever had any luck.

Still she regretted it. Audrey had wanted just a moment to say goodbye to Matt, to make sure he understood that she wasn’t angry; to see if she could ascertain if he was or not. At first she couldn’t understand why D.L. would choose her over Matt for this type of thing, but it soon dawned on her. Since Matt had his power back it was a huge advantage. Whoever the spy might be could potentially let their guard down and give away something valuable.

Halfway there, taking the same route as Hiro had, D.L. and Audrey heard the sound of a building collapsing nearby.

They froze, turning to one another as if to ask, ‘what now?’

“Should we check it out?” Audrey asked him.

“It could be the Order,” D.L. provided.

“Or Sylar.”

D.L. nodded.

“Let’s get to the Market first,” he finally said. “It’s closer. Once we check on Peter and the rest we’ll go take a look.”

Audrey nodded.

Coming out on Congress Street both D.L. and Audrey stopped dead.

There was a body in the street.

****

Peter, Niki and Franco proceeded with caution approaching from the east.

In the rain it was hard to tell but the building looked as if it had collapsed for no good reason. Niki and Franco were both fixated with it, but not Peter. Peter was looking north up Congress Street.

Breaking into a run without warning, Peter stopped twenty feet behind him, behind Sylar.

Peter didn’t register the fact that Lauren was face down a few feet from the other man, or that D.L. and Audrey were standing just off to the left of that; all he saw was Sylar.

And Sylar felt his presence as well.

No longer interested in the girl before him, he turned and faced Peter with a smile on his face.

Peter didn’t have time to think if he’d made a wise move or not, Sylar didn’t give him time going immediately on the offensive, throwing what could have passed for bolts of lightning his way.

Peter reacted by deflecting them off onto the nearby buildings.

Niki and Franco hung back, uncertain what to do.

But they were close enough.

The two of them were just close enough that Peter could tap into their powers giving him the slight advantage over Sylar.

Sensing it might be the only time he had the upper hand, Peter rushed him.

Sylar hadn’t expected it. Hadn’t thought he would dare try something so bold. Petrelli wasn’t a bold man. At least, he hadn’t been five years ago. Not like this.

Peter managed to pin him to the ground with his now superior strength, but Sylar wasn’t done yet.

Sylar pushed Peter off of him, mentally throwing him into the air and away. Peter recovered as best he could, shaking it off, getting back to his feet and preparing for a second charge. It was about then that he registered D.L. and Audrey’s presence as the two of them were pulling Lauren out of harms way.

The slight distraction was all Sylar needed. He moved towards Peter with an eerie grace, propelled almost, pinning him to the nearest wall by the throat.

Peter let Sylar hold him there for a split second, let him think he’d won before phasing through him entirely and pushing him face first into the wall with all his borrowed might.

Again.

And again.

And again.

“Peter!”

Niki took him forcefully by the arm and dragged him away.

“We’ve got to go!” she screamed at him.

He shook her off, pushed her away.

Peter was absorbing more than just Sylar’s abilities. He was absorbing his obsession. His need to dominate and consume. Sylar’s lust for power.

It was uncontrollable.

“We don’t have time for this,” Niki hollered at him, once more yanking him by the arm. “Lauren is hurt and the Order is closing in! Peter, snap out of it!”

Peter shook his head forcefully, trying to concentrate on what she was saying. Audrey and Hiro were standing with her, looking alarmed and a little afraid. It took him a moment to realize why; to understand Niki’s urgency.

The helicopters were back and hovering overhead.

“Just leave him, Peter,” Niki yelled once more, her eyes begging him to come with them. “We have to take shelter! Come on!”

Peter looked down at Sylar’s still form below and thought that he might be dead. It probably wasn’t true, but he could be. He’d certainly hit him hard enough.

“Come on,” Audrey said in a much gentler tone, urging him forward and still looking terrified.

Peter nodded, his whole body shaking with adrenaline and fright at what he’d done. At what he’d momentarily become.

He followed the three of them as they quickly made their way not to Quincy Market as they’d done a thousand times before, but to the lesser used Faneuil Hall nearby. It was a comparatively smaller building, more open than the Market, and Peter saw immediately why it was preferred. From the top floor of Faneuil Hall they would have a much better view of what was happening around them.

“How is she?” Audrey asked as soon as they’d locked the doors behind them.

Franco met her gaze and shook his head slightly.

Franco, D.L. and Ando hadn’t waited on Peter and the rest. After a brief consultation with Niki, they’d brought Lauren right up.

It wasn’t pretty.

The back of her head had been fairly split open. Lauren was alive but probably not for long. The only sign of life they’d had from Lauren at all was the twitching of her left hand. Ando had noticed it and taken hold of the offender, if only to make it stop.

“We can’t stay here,” D.L. said. “She needs help. She’s not…”

He stopped and took a deep breath to compose himself.

“We need to get back to the rest of the colony,” he finished.

“How?” Niki asked.

“I don’t know how,” D.L. returned.

“No arguing,” Audrey said forcefully. “We can’t afford to ague. We need to think.”

“The helicopters are still out there,” Hiro said, peering out the window. “There are three… no, four. Four of them. They shot at Lauren and I before. We’d never make it past them.”

“What about Sylar?” Franco asked.

“I don’t think we need to worry about him just yet,” Niki said, casting a look at Peter.

Peter was staring out the window opposite Hiro, still unable to concentrate. Still unable to entirely shake the urges he’d picked up from Sylar.

No one spoke. No one knew what to say. The situation seemed hopeless.

“We need to get her to Claire,” Ando finally said. “She won’t make it… She’s not going to… Claire is the only chance she has now. We have to try.”

“I could try and stop time again,” Hiro suggested. “Bring Claire…”

“You’re not bringing Claire back here,” Peter said firmly. “No. I’m sorry. I won’t let you do that. I’m sorry.”

“What if I took Lauren to her?” Hiro suggested after a brief pause.

“I’m not sure she’ll make the trip,” Franco said, forced to put it bluntly. “Her head… whatever he hit her with it did a lot of damage. We move her again and it could kill her.”

“She’ll die here for sure,” Audrey reasoned.

“Hiro can also let Jacobs and the others know where we are,” Niki added. “Peter, what do you think? You’re in charge here.”

“I’m not…” Peter said, shaking his head. “I don’t know.”

Niki let out an extremely audible sigh.

“Fine,” Peter said, knowing she’d directed it solely at him. “Fine. What are her chances if we keep her here? Anyone know?”

“Not good,” Franco said, shaking his head. “I’m not a doctor but I know a serious wound when I see one. She’s probably hemorrhaging. I’d guess she’s got an hour at the most.”

“And if we move her? Even carefully?”

“It could only speed things up,” Franco said. “But it doesn’t get much worse than death, does it?”

“Can you do it?” Peter asked, turning to Hiro.

“I can try.”

“Ando?” Peter said, turning to for permission.

He nodded tersely before letting go of Lauren’s hand, leaning down and kissing her once on the forehead.

“Alright,” Peter said. “Let’s do this.”  



	13. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 17: Containment**

Matt had resumed watching the street as if nothing had happened. Maggie took D.L.’s spot without asking and the two of them lapsed into an uneasy silence.

“Did you see that?”

“Where?” Matt asked, surprised by her outburst.

“Near the building across the street,” Maggie said, pointing for emphasis. “There are two, no three… there are three men. They’ve got something… carrying something that looks like a satellite dish.”

Matt moved from his window to hers to get a better look.

“I can’t see…”

“They’re in the shadows,” Maggie provided, pointing once more.

Matt was hesitant to lean forward and put his back to her, but he also didn’t want Maggie thinking he didn’t trust her.

“I can’t see them,” Matt answered truthfully.

_‘Oh, I’m so stupid.’_

“No, of course you can’t,” Maggie sighed. “They’re in the dark. You can’t…”

“Is that what you do?” Matt asked out of curiosity.

“Partially.”

He nodded, realizing she wasn’t about to say anymore.

“So,” he continued, “what are they doing now? Are there any more of them?”

“No,” she answered, looking once more to the street. “Just those three. It looks like they’re…”

_‘What are they…’_

“They’re what?” Matt asked, shaking his head slightly.

Maggie didn’t respond, she only continued to stare out the window into the darkness.

“Maggie?”

“I can’t… I can’t see them. They turned whatever that thing was on and I can’t see them anymore. What is that? How did they do that?”

“What did it look like again?” Matt asked quickly.

“Like a satellite dish, I told you,” Maggie answered, sounding a bit panicked. “They pointed it this way and nothing. I can’t do it. It was like they’d turned off…”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes,” she said adamantly.

Matt nodded, straining to hear her thoughts, and coming up with nothing.

“They know we’re here,” Matt said after a moment. “We need to tell Jacobs. They’re going to attack.”

“What?” Maggie said, following him as he hurried out the door. “You can’t know…”

“That thing you saw, it’s an inhibitor,” Matt explained. “Like the one in my head, only bigger. They had them at the Republic. They stop us from doing what we do. The Order is using it now, focusing them on this building for a reason. They’re taking away our advantage. We’ve got to get out of here, now. Got to…”

“Get out?” she questioned, right on his heels. “And where do you suggest we go? Out the front door?”

“Matt!”

Both of them turned at once to see Hiro running down the hallway clutching Lauren in his arms.

“What…”

“Where is Claire?” Hiro panted out.

“Downstairs,” Matt answered, already leading the way. “What happened?”

“Sylar,” Hiro explained, as they all rushed forward. “He attacked her. Peter stopped him for now but it doesn’t… I had to run the last stretch. When I got near the building, just outside, time caught up with me again.”

“The Order put inhibitors around the perimeter,” Matt said. “It wasn’t your fault.”

“I left her alone,” Hiro returned. “I should have never…”

“Claire will help her,” Matt assured him.

“Help her what?” Claire asked, hearing that last bit as they rounded the corner into the makeshift infirmary.

“What happened?” Mohinder asked, coming directly over to Hiro and taking Lauren out of his arms.

“She was hit in the back of the head,” Hiro explained. “We found her unconscious. She hasn’t woken. Can you… It’s not too late, is it?”

“Lay her down,” Claire said quietly.

Mohinder put her in the only other available bed across from Deborah.

“This is kind of a crowd,” Claire continued. “I think I’d rather…”

“Everyone out,” Mohinder finished, urging the newcomers and Nathan out the door.

“No,” Claire said, grapping Matt’s hand. “Stay. Please.”

_‘Just in case.’_

Matt nodded and Mohinder shut the door on them.

“Are you up to this?” Matt asked.

“I have to be,” Claire said as she stepped forward, taking Lauren’s head in her hands.

Just outside the door, Hiro leaned back against the wall with his chin pressed to his chest.

“Sylar did that?” Nathan asked quietly.

“Yes.”

“And everyone else?”

“Is fine,” Hiro answered. “They’re at Faneuil Hall. The Order is closing in though. We need to go back and get them out.”

“We can’t use our powers,” Maggie said bluntly, “you know that. They’ve got those devices lined up outside. That’s why Matt and I were heading down here to find Jacobs. They’re blocking our abilities.”

“So they’re getting ready to move in for the kill,” Nathan provided.

“That’s what Matt said,” she returned.

“Let’s talk about it later,” Mohinder added tersely.

“When would you like to talk about it?” Nathan asked. “When they’re shooting at us or when they’re locking us away?”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“I’m going to go get Jacobs,” Maggie said, turning and stomping off in the opposite direction.

“Good,” Nathan fired off at her. “I never liked her much.”

“I’m sure it’s mutual,” Mohinder added.

Nathan only smiled.

“Guys,” they heard Micah call out. “I’ve got incoming messages from our people on the roof. They’re being shot at. They’ve found us. It’s the Order.”

“Get everyone down here,” Nathan ordered.

“Wait a minute,” Mohinder interrupted. “You can’t just…”

“No one else here is doing it,” Nathan cut him off. “If what Matt thinks is true, that they’ve turned off our powers somehow, then those men are only going to get slaughtered up there.”

“So we hold up in the basement?” Mohinder fired back at him. “We all stay down here and wait it out? They’ll kill us all.”

“There has to be another way out of this place,” Nathan argued.

“For you maybe.”

“Enough,” Hiro shouted.

“What’s the problem?” Jacobs asked, approaching them with Maggie just behind.

“We need to get those men off the roof,” Nathan answered. “Micah says they’re taking fire. If Maggie and Matt are right…”

“They’re not,” Jacobs quickly interrupted. “Not entirely. Our powers still work down here. The devices must work directionally. They’re aiming at the building, not at the ground underneath the building.”

“All the more reason to get everyone into the basement,” Nathan urged.

“Agreed,” Jacobs said with a short nod. “Micah, will you call them?”

The young man hurried off as instructed.

“Now what?” Mohinder asked.

“Government Center.”

They all turned towards the sound of the voice in the doorway.

Lauren stood there, pale but on her own feet. Shaking a bit and leaning on Claire for added support, Matt just behind her. Her dark hair was still caked with blood around her neck.

But alive. Very much alive.

“The subway,” Lauren continued. “There’s a stop right outside of this building. We can tunnel to it if we hold them off long enough. Seal it up behind us. It will give us some time. Maybe enough.”

“Are you alright?” Hiro asked, coming over and taking Claire’s spot by her side.

“Tired,” she answered. “Shaky. But… I’m fine. I’m…”

“Where should we dig?” Jacobs asked.

“Towards the front,” Lauren said. “I can show you.”

Jacobs nodded and together, with Hiro and Maggie, they left.

“We need to start blocking off these entrances,” Nathan instructed. “As soon as everyone is down here…”

“Wait a minute,” Matt said sharply. “What about the rest? Audrey, D.L., Peter… there are some of us still outside of this building.”

“They’re at Faneuil Hall,” Nathan answered. “They’ll be fine…”

“Fine? With Sylar and the Order…”

“We can’t help them from here,” Nathan barked.

“What if they’re on their way back?” Matt asked. “We start blocking all the entrances and…”

“They’re not going to do that,” Nathan shot back. “They know better…”

“Wait a minute,” Matt interrupted. “Why are we even listening to you? Who left you in charge here?”

“Get over it, Parkman,” Nathan snapped back at him. “I’m in this just as deep as you are. As everyone is.”

“That’s such crap,” Matt returned, really angry now. “You’re only here because you had no where else to go. If you’d have stayed, they’d have killed you.”

“Isn’t that why we’re all here?”

“Yes and thank you for that,” Matt shot back at him.

“You still blame me for this?” Nathan asked, stepping closer and growing louder. “After going down there and seeing first hand what’s really happening, you still blame me?”

“Yes. I do. You laid the groundwork for this mess. You helped them.”

“I had no choice!”

“You were the only one with a choice!”

“You made your own mistakes,” Nathan retorted. “Your own choices. I had nothing to do with how you left Peter…”

“Are we still on about that?” Matt asked bitterly. “Do you think I wanted to leave him? That I’ve forgotten what happened?”

“You seem to have forgotten a lot of things.”

Claire knew that was it; that was the breaking point for Matt. Intentional or not, Nathan had pushed the wrong button and she had to do something to end this now.

“Stop,” Claire said as forcefully as she could, stepping between the two of them. “Please.”

“Claire’s right,” Mohinder said, recognizing that the situation was close to out of hand. “This isn’t helping.”

 _‘It’s not worth it,’_ Claire thought, staring hard at Matt and practically willing him to look her way.

He finally did, stepping back and giving her a slight nod.

“Matt,” Mohinder continued, “Nathan has a point. We can’t even get outside the building. There is no way they’re coming back here. Hiro said so himself. They’re waiting at Faneuil Hall.”

“Fine,” he said shortly.

“Listen,” Nathan said, lowering his voice and coming closer. “We need to talk. There’s something I need to make sure you all know.”

Mohinder nodded uneasily and motioned towards the infirmary.

“Okay,” Nathan said, shutting the door once all four of them were inside.

“What about her?” Matt asked, pointing towards Deborah.

“She’ll be out for hours,” Mohinder said with confidence. “Now, what is it?”

“It’s about Maggie,” Nathan answered. “She can’t be trusted.”

“Why not?” Claire asked, brow furrowed in disbelief.

“She’s likely Primatech’s mole.”

“Not this again,” Claire said dismissively.

“No,” Matt said with a nod, “he’s right. D.L. and Audrey were pretty suspicious once Peter took her out of the armory and Jacobs pretty much told me the same. He didn’t want her knowing I had my power back. She’s been testing me as well. Seeing if I can hear her.”

 _‘What’s that involve?’_ Nathan thought.

 _‘You should know,’_ Matt pushed back at him with admittedly more force than was absolutely necessary.

Nathan winced.

“So, Maggie is the mole and not Lauren,” Claire said with a short nod. “Okay. So what do we do about it?”

“Don’t leave her alone with anyone for starters,” Nathan provided. “We need to keep an eye on her. She may be helping them from the inside.”

“I don’t know,” Matt said shaking his head. “She seemed genuinely surprised that they used those inhibitors on us. So either she’s not the spy or…”

“Or the Order isn’t working for Primatech any longer,” Nathan finished.

“I told you they’d take you first.”

The four of them all turned to face Deborah who, despite the heavy sedative given her, was sitting upright in bed and staring off into space with her eerie white eyes.

“All of you.”

****

“Suresh, Parkman, Petrelli and Bennet. Are we clear, Major Fuller?”

“Yes,” he answered. “Perfectly clear.”

“Good. Your men know them on sight? I don’t want any mistakes.”

“Yes. They’ve all been briefed. They’re all carrying the cards. They know what to do.”

“How much longer?”

“Half an hour, an hour at the most,” the man returned. “The doors appear to be fairly well blocked but nothing we can’t handle.”

“As soon as the ground level is secure, I want access.”

“Are you certain you need to be taking those types of risks?”

“You do your job and let me do mine.”

“Understood,” he conceded. “And the rest of the colony? What should we do with them as far as containment goes? It could be a problem.”

“Containment? No. That won’t be a problem. There will be no survivors.”

“But…”

“No one survives but Suresh, Parkman, Petrelli and Bennet.”

“Understood,” Major Fuller said with a nod.

“Good. Now get to it.”

“Yes, Ms. Yi.”  



	14. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 18: Genesis**

Maggie watched for several minutes as Lauren, Hiro and Jacobs debated which plan of action to take. Jacobs began tunneling as soon as they’d decided the best approach. Lauren and Hiro retreated upstairs to bring everyone to the basement and move their weapons stash.

It was all fairly straightforward and very frightening.

Frightening for her at least.

As soon as she could, Maggie excused herself under the pretense of talking with the others, of calming down the crowd. Really what she wanted to do was get in touch with her contact.

Maggie hadn’t had a chance to radio back since her last transmission informing her superiors that Parkman and Hanson had arrived.

They had told her to go to the backup plan and expect company, but she was certain they had no idea that Sylar was back.

Making her way quickly to the radio room she was relieved to find it empty.

The door, unfortunately, did not have a lock but she couldn’t worry about that. Shutting it was the best she could do. Shut it and hope Micah didn’t return immediately.

She turned the dial to the correct frequency and waited.

“You’re going to compromise yourself,” a voice came across sounding flat.

“What’s going on?”

There was a pause.

“Repeat,” Maggie said. “What is going on?”

“Do you have company?”

“Yes,” Maggie answered. “The Order and Sylar.”

Another pause.

“Did you copy that?” Maggie asked. “I said Sylar is here. He’s in the area after Petrelli. What do you want me to do?”

“Do you have your list?”

“Yes,” she answered as calmly as she could.

“Stick to it,” the voice returned.

“And the rest?”

“Let the Order dispose of them.”

“I’m a little worried they’ll dispose of me too,” Maggie admitted. There was no time to be coy. They owed her. They at least owed her some protection.

“We’ll have you out of there soon,” she was assured.

“Good.”

“How is Parkman?”

“What do you mean?”

“How is he? Is he still sick?”

It was Maggie’s turn to pause and consider things.

“Did you copy that?” the voice asked.

“Yes,” she finally answered. “He seems off. He claims he’s cold. Looks pale. It’s not a side effect of the process?”

“What about the device? How did it work?” asked the voice instead of answering her.

“Perfectly,” Maggie confirmed.

“How did they remove it?”

“What?” Maggie asked in surprise.

“It’s been removed,” the voice returned. “We’ve been monitoring it remotely. It’s deactivated and removed.”

“I wasn’t aware of that.”

“Be careful of him and don’t contact us again unless it’s an emergency. Stick to the plan, the list and don’t fail. Understood?”

“Where will we meet?”

“We’ll find you.”

Maggie clicked the radio off, knowing that was the end.

“What are you doing?”

Whirling around Maggie was shocked and a bit upset to see Micah in the room with her.

“Nothing,” she said immediately, setting the receiver down.

“Who were you talking to just now?” Micah questioned not convinced.

Maggie couldn’t think fast enough, couldn’t lie fast enough.

Micah made a move towards the door, shaking his head; positive she was up to no good. And she had no choice.

She drew her gun.

****

“I can’t believe you left him alone.”

“Niki, I didn’t leave him alone. He’s with the rest of the colony. Micah is fine.”

“Fine? Who’s looking after him? Making sure…”

“He’s fifteen years old,” D.L. fired back at her in a heated whisper. “Fifteen. He’s not a child. He can look after himself.”

“Not in this situation. Not if it gets…”

“I know you’re worried,” D.L. said, wrapping an arm around her shoulder, “but he’ll be fine. We’ll be fine. We’ve always made it through before.”

Niki nodded, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.

“You’ll see,” D.L. said reassuringly, placing a kiss on her temple.

Audrey turned away from the scene, pacing the room once more. She couldn’t keep still. Couldn’t seem to sit or stand in one spot for more than a second.

The waiting was awful. Worse than awful. It was torture.

She didn’t know what they were waiting for; no one did.

Audrey walked from Franco’s end of the room on the west side to Ando’s end on the east. Out of all of them, only Franco seemed at ease. Maybe he wasn’t. Maybe he had just learned not to let it show.

The rest of them were a mess, Audrey included.

She hated to think it, but at least when Lauren was with them there had been an object. Something for them to focus on beside the fact that they were not getting out of here anytime soon; that if they did leave, there was no where to go.

They’d had something to hope for.

Now… now there was nothing.

All she could do was worry and wonder. It had been a long time since she’d been able to just think uninterrupted like this, and the more she thought the more discontent she became.

Everything had been happening so fast.

Turning on the spot, ready for another lap around the room, Audrey stopped as she caught Peter staring at her, inviting her over to his side.

“What’s wrong?” she asked quietly as she sat down next to him.

“Nothing,” he admitted. “I just wanted to talk. You seem like you might need to as well.”

She nodded, looking at the floor for a moment.

“How are we going to get out of here?” she asked.

“I don’t…”

“I don’t expect you to answer,” she interrupted. “It’s just… It doesn’t look good.”

“No,” Peter agreed. “It really doesn’t.”

“I’ve had so many… so many moments like this,” Audrey continued in a strangely somber voice. “So many escapes that I have to wonder if one more is too much to ask.”

“How did you get out of the Republic?” Peter questioned.

“I did what I had to do.”

“What does that mean?”

Audrey shook her head slightly and stared at the floor.

“Audrey?”

“I don’t know.”

“Yeah,” Peter said with a nod, “who knows how we manage…”

“No,” Audrey interrupted looking back at him. Her eyes were intense and for the first time Peter saw something like fear in them. “I really… I don’t know.”

“What?”

“The more I think about it,” Audrey said as she dropped her head into her hands, “the more I realize that I don’t know; I can’t remember it. Not clearly.”

“It could be stress or shock,” Peter suggested.

“No. No, that’s not it.”

“Why didn’t you say something sooner?”

“Because it didn’t... I didn’t realize,” Audrey answered. “I was there. I was trying to get him out and… I don’t know. I don’t know how I did it. How I even could do it. It’s just…”

“Start with what you do remember,” Peter urged.

“Okay,” Audrey said, letting out a breath. “I know that I had looked for months for Matt. That’s… that’s real. When I found the facility he was at I had watched for days, learned who went in and out and what times. I was ready to try. To at least learn more.”

“Did you make it in?”

“Yes,” she said firmly. “I did. I did get inside. I found him and…”

She stopped abruptly, placing her hands over her mouth with tears in her eyes.

“Peter,” she continued softly, “I know I’m not making this up. That this isn’t imagined. Seeing him… what they’d done… I remember it so clearly. I remember thinking that if I couldn’t get him out that I wouldn’t leave him like that. No matter what. That I’d…”

Peter nodded before gently urging her to go on with the story.

“It’s then,” she went on. “That’s when it get’s fuzzy. I think I shot someone. Someone definitely came in the room but the next thing I really remember is being outside with Matt. Heading towards the car I’d brought and on our way.”

“They let you go.”

“Yeah,” Audrey agreed. “They did. I’m so… I didn’t realize. I didn’t… I was so happy to be away from there. There was so much going on. Matt was really bad off. There hadn’t been time until now to really go over it in my own head; to be anything but grateful.”

“Why would they do that? Why let you go?”

“I don’t know,” Audrey said shaking her head. “I can’t think of one reason... What would they have to gain?”

“They obviously knew where we were,” Peter mused. “They didn’t need to follow you here for that.”

“It doesn’t make sense,” Audrey said. “Why put Matt through all of that and just let him go?”

“And you said it yourself, they can’t take us all in. They can’t contain us. So…”

“Unless it’s another…”

Audrey trailed off as if she suddenly had connected the dots.

“Another what?”

“Obviously the inhibitor worked, so what...”

“I’m not following you,” Peter said.

“They’ve been experimenting on you,” Audrey answered, the light back in her eyes. “Part of the process. They test what you can do, how fast you can do it. Reactions. Interactions. It’s all highly regulated and controlled. From what I read and saw…”

“For how long?” Peter asked.

“You wouldn’t believe me if…”

“How long?” Peter repeated a bit louder.

“Have you ever heard of Project Genesis?” Audrey asked in return.

Peter shook his head slightly although it did have a certain ring to it; like something out of a dream.

“I wanted to talk to Mohinder about all of this,” Audrey sighed. “But again, no time. Matt doesn’t even know the half of it.”

“Are you going to tell me?” Peter asked growing impatient.

“I’m trying to,” Audrey assured him. “I don’t have all the answers and what I tell you is likely to just raise more questions.”

“Let’s hear it,” Niki said, surprising them both.

The rest of the group had gathered around them as they’d been speaking. Everyone but Ando who still sat by the window; still on the watch for Hiro’s return.

Audrey took a deep breath.

“You,” she said, pointing to Peter first, “all of you. You each got your powers at roughly the same time. About half a year before New York happened. Is that right?”

They each nodded slightly.

“Primatech, however, was already in place. They weren’t playing catch-up like we were, like the FBI was. They knew what was happening and they even knew who it was happening to.”

“Okay,” Peter said nodding, “but so did Mohinder’s father. He had a list…”

“I know,” Audrey interrupted, “I do. But the thing is, he had a theory but they knew it was going on.”

“So you think they started it?” Peter asked. “That they…”

“Guys,” Ando said loudly from across the room, interrupting their conversation. “There are more helicopters now. Lots more.”

Franco made it to the window first, peering out into the night sky.

“Those aren’t the Order’s copters,” he said bleakly.

“Primatech?” Niki asked.

“Has to be,” he answered.

“We can’t stay here any longer,” Audrey said, taking a look for herself. “Everyone is back at City Hall. We can’t just leave them there.”

To Peter’s surprise, everyone was looking at him; looking to him for instruction.

Peter had never wanted to be in charge, he had never wanted to be a leader, but obviously what you want and what you get are two different things.

He was their leader and he had to do something.  



	15. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 19: Away**

They’d left one exit open, just in case.

The first strikes on the building had been terrifying and loud and three people, none of which Claire knew personally, had died.

Unfortunately, there had been nothing she could do for them. Shortly after the move to Boston Claire had learned one of the more unfortunate drawbacks of her power; she couldn’t heal anyone that didn’t already have a power. A young girl had broken her leg in a freak accident and Claire couldn’t do anything for her. She wasn’t sure which one of them had cried harder.

So far, no one had panicked but the tension was high. Everyone had been informed of the plan and now they were only waiting. Waiting for Jacobs to finish and give the word to retreat.

There had been so much to do in such a short time that Matt had a hard time keeping an eye on Claire. Not that she thought he needed to, truthfully it was getting old. Claire kept thinking bitterly and loudly that she was twenty-two and didn’t need a babysitter, let alone two. Matt wasn’t the only one trailing her, Nathan was too.

There was enough going on without the added threat that those two might actually break out into a physical fight. So far, they were actually being extremely restrained. Claire knew how much Matt loathed Nathan, and that the feeling was pretty much mutually returned, but to their credit they also seemed to realize that there were bigger problems.

Claire hoped that realization lasted.

“We’re ready,” Lauren said coming up to them with a still slightly dazed look about her. “Jacobs wants everyone to start heading out. We’re going down the green line until we hit Boston University. Got it?”

“Then what?” Mohinder asked.

“Hiro and I are going back for the others,” Lauren said flatly. “We’re taking an earlier stop on Boylston.”

“We’ll come with you,” Claire immediately put in.

“No,” Lauren said shaking her head. “The fewer of us the better. Too many and the Order might pick up on our escape route.”

“But…”

“Claire,” Lauren interrupted, “I’m sorry.”

“Peter wouldn’t want you to risk your life like that,” Nathan added.

Claire rolled her eyes in frustration. She hated being treated this way.

_‘I’m the only one here who can’t get hurt and I’m the only one here no one trusts to do anything.’_

_‘That’s not true,’_ Matt returned in her head.

_‘How would you know?’_

_‘How would I know what?’_

_‘How I’m treated here. You haven’t been here.’_

_‘Claire…’_

_‘You all treat me like I’m a child,’_ Claire thought back bitterly. _‘I’m not. And I have just as much right to help as everyone else does.’_

_‘Claire, you are in more danger…’_

_‘Says you! You don’t really know that.’_

_‘Yes, I do.’_

_‘Everyone else is at least allowed to try. I have to sit here and…’_

_‘You’re not going.’_

“You can’t tell me what to do!” Claire snapped causing everyone to turn and stare.

The room went completely silent.

“Do you think we could have some privacy?” Matt asked the rest of the group, looking at the floor either out of embarrassment or anger.

“Make it quick,” Nathan commented as he opened the door and led the way out. “We should be leaving right now.”

“Come on, Deborah,” Mohinder urged, helping the woman to her feet and out the door. “Let’s take a walk.”

“She’s bleeding, but she can’t,” the woman muttered, casting an almost fearful look in Claire’s direction. “She can’t.”

“I know,” Mohinder said soothingly without really listening to what she’d said.

Finally, Matt and Claire were alone in the infirmary.

“We don’t have time for this,” Claire said in a tight voice, just barely holding her emotions in check as she finished packing up the medical supplies. “I’m sorry I yelled.”

“We’ll make time,” Matt said. “We’ve got to have this out. Now, Claire. I don’t want to be fighting with you and running for my life at the same time.”

“That’s not funny.”

“I’m being serious,” he said. “Claire, what’s going on here?”

“I don’t know,” she admitted. “I’m just sick of no one trusting me to do anything. Everyone goes out of their way to protect me and coddle me and I’m not a child, Matt. You have to stop treating me like one.”

“I don’t mean…”

“I know you don’t mean to,” Claire quickly cut in. “I realize that, but you do. All this looking after me and worrying about me like I can’t take care of myself, it’s really gotten old.”

“I don’t look after you or worry about you because I think that,” Matt said, clearly stung by the accusation. “Claire, I do those things because…”

Matt stopped talking abruptly clearly confused.

“Because of what?” Claire asked softly, taking a step towards him.

“You know.”

“Then say it.”

“That’s neither here nor there,” Matt said, trying to dismiss the subject.

“Figures,” Claire said just under her breath.

“What?”

“If you didn’t hear me say it you heard me think it,” Claire retorted.

“Okay,” said Matt, trying to get to the heart of this as quickly as possible. “Stop for a minute. You’re mad at me. Why? What did I do? What didn’t I do? You want me to say that it’s okay for you to run off into danger without so much as a plan? Is that it?”

“I’m mad because you left,” Claire admitted. “I’m mad that you left for so long and didn’t tell me where or why. You lied to me. You said…”

“I did leave because of Nathan.”

“But you also left because of Jacobs.”

“I know," Matt sighed.

“And you can’t just come back here and expect it all to be the same.”

“I really didn’t,” Matt said with an awkward smile.

“You know what I mean,” Claire bit back. “I was an adult when you left and I’m still an adult now. Why can’t you see that? Do you not want to? I’m perfectly capable of doing things on my own without you hovering over me, waiting for me to make a mistake.”

“Is that what you think?”

“Well, yes. No. I don’t… I just hate feeling useless. Peter is out there with the Order and Sylar and God knows what else can possibly go wrong and I feel so useless. It’s so…”

“Terrifying,” Matt finished for her.

Claire nodded in agreement.

“It’s okay,” Matt said reassuringly, placing his hands on her shoulders and pulling her closer. “It is. It’s alright to be afraid. It really is.”

“You’re not afraid.”

“Are you kidding?” Matt asked, relieved she wasn’t pulling away; that she’d wrapped her arms around him in return. “I’m scared. I really am.”

“I forgot about Audrey,” Claire whispered, resting her head against his chest.

“It’s terrifying,” he repeated, “but we can’t dwell on it, Claire. Peter and Audrey know how to take care of themselves and Lauren and Hiro are the two best people here to go and bring them back. I don’t like it either, but I understand. I try and understand it.”

“Hey,” Nathan called, knocking on the door once before opening it. “You two done yet?”

Matt caught the look on Nathan’s face and knew how it must look.

“Yeah,” Claire replied, moving away from Matt in a slightly embarrassed manner.

“Good, we need to go,” Nathan said still eyeing the two of them suspiciously.

Matt did the smart thing and tuned him out. He wasn’t interested in what Nathan might be thinking at the moment.

“Let’s go,” Claire returned. “We’re ready.”

“Everything okay?” Mohinder asked, joining Nathan in the doorway.

“Fine,” Matt said looking the exact opposite of that very statement.

“Are you sure?” Mohinder asked. “You look a little…”

“Pale,” Nathan finished.

Claire turned to him suddenly, as if just noticing it as well.

“I’m fine,” Matt repeated. “I’m just a little cold is all.”

“Are you sure?” asked Claire growing more concerned than before.

“Yeah,” he said with a quick nod. “I am.”

“What are you all still doing here?” Jacobs asked, startling the four of them.

“We were just on our way,” Mohinder said. “I just need to… Oh no.”

“What now?” Claire asked, briefly taking her eyes off of Matt to address the other man.

“Deborah,” he answered. “I sat her down right over there and now…”

“Go,” Jacobs said. “I’ll find her. I’m doing a last sweep of the building. Nearly everyone is in the tunnels now. The four of you should be there as well.”

“But…” Mohinder started to object but was quickly silenced.

“No buts,” Jacobs said. “Go. They’ll need you there. I’ll be right behind with Deborah and Maggie.”

“Maggie’s missing too?” Nathan asked.

“Yes.”

“Don’t count on finding her,” Nathan replied.

“I don’t,” Jacobs admitted, “but I have to look. Until it’s certain, I have to look.”

“Maybe someone should go with you,” Mohinder suggested.

“No,” he said firmly. “I’ll be fine. But you all need to go. Now. Hiro and Lauren are waiting at the entrance for you.”

“What about Micah?” Claire asked.

“I believe he came down earlier,” Jacobs said uncertainly. “But again, that’s why I’m double checking. Now go.”

“Okay,” Mohinder reluctantly agreed leaving the older man to his task.

****

Maggie watched from the shadows as the remainder of the colony fled. She waited only until she saw Parkman and Petrelli leave before making her move and returning to where she’d stashed the younger man.

Her list and orders were clear and she knew exactly who she was supposed to pick up, but Maggie wasn’t about to risk her neck. Primatech would have to find another way to pick up Claire and Peter, the best she could do was offer up Micah.

Slipping back down the corridor Maggie opened the door to the storage room where Micah was bound and gagged and unconscious. She hadn’t hurt him, only knocked him out with her stun gun; the only gun she hoped to use.

“You know you’ll end up just like me,” a serene voice said from just behind her causing Maggie to jump.

“What are you doing here?” Maggie asked Deborah, casting worried glances up and down the hall to ensure they were alone.

“Destiny,” she answered. “It brought me here. I know why he left me behind. He didn’t want to see his future. No one wants to know, not really. No one wants the burden.”

“You shouldn’t be here,” Maggie said as she moved her hand towards her weapon, the real one this time. “Why didn’t you go with everyone else?”

“I told you,” Deborah answered, not even blinking. “Destiny. I’m supposed to be here. You’re supposed to kill me.”

It felt as if a rock landed in her stomach.

“What?” Maggie whispered.

“I’m not afraid to die,” Deborah went on, taking a bold step forward. “I’ve known since I first saw you what was going to happen. You couldn’t change it now if you tried.”

Maggie said nothing, just leveled the gun at the woman in an automatic gesture. Something she did when threatened, and she certainly felt that way even if Deborah was unarmed.

“You don’t want to try though,” Deborah said, “do you? You’re tired. I’m tired, too. They want this to end just as much…”

Maggie didn’t let her finish. She didn’t want to hear anymore of her insane ramblings, couldn’t hear anymore. She hated doing it, didn’t think of herself as a killer, but something had to be done.

Besides, if she hadn’t killed her the Order surely would have. Someone else would have. Maggie could rationalize her death later. In the long run, what was one more person? It was all for the greater good she kept reminding herself.

Thanks to the silencer, the gun wasn’t loud enough to draw attention, but it did catch Micah’s.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” she said in her calmest voice.

Micah didn’t look convinced.

Maggie wasn’t going to explain further, just reached down and hauled the young man up to his feet by his arm.

“Don’t try anything stupid,” she said quietly as she began to march him towards the last available exit to the ground level of City Hall.

“Maggie.”

Cursing under her breath she turned making sure to keep Micah in front of her.

“I trusted you,” Jacobs said from not too far away but still too close for her comfort; she knew his range.

“This isn’t about you,” Maggie said as evenly as she could manage. “This is bigger than that. It’s bigger than…”

“You don’t have to do this,” Jacobs said as he took a tentative step forward.

Maggie readjusted Micah so that he blocked more of her body.

“Of course I don’t have to,” Maggie returned, “I want to. You don’t get that, do you? You think you’re on the right side, but you’re not. You don’t even have a side in this. Not really. No one does, only Primatech. You either help them or you just wait for the end. That’s it.”

“Maggie,” Jacobs said taking another step towards her.

“Don’t,” she said warningly, raising the gun for the first time. “I’ll kill you. I will. And I know you well enough to know that you won’t hurt Micah so you might as well lower your hands now.”

Jacobs smiled and shrugged and did as she’d asked.

“Now do me something in return,” he bartered. “Let him go. Micah isn’t…”

“They want him,” Maggie cut off. “And I get them what they want. Now go. I don’t want to hurt you but…”

“Maggie, you’re not going to…”

But she did.

As Jacobs spoke Maggie watched him take another step forward; one step too far.

She squeezed off three shots, all of them finding their mark and dropping the older man to the floor with a dull thud.

Micah made to move but Maggie held him in place.

“If I have to I will kill you,” she said sternly. “Don’t make me do it.”

Micah nodded, unable to take his eyes off of Jacobs as he did so.

“I really don’t want to,” Maggie repeated in a quieter voice.

She couldn’t look away either.  



	16. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 20: Friends**

“What’s the hold up?” Nathan asked as they came upon the group halted at the station.

“This is Boylston,” Hiro answered. “This is where Lauren and I go.”

“Okay,” Nathan drawled, “but why is everyone else stopping? We’re kind of in a hurry here.”

“We’re waiting for everyone to catch up,” Mohinder explained as he scanned the rather large crowd around him.

“Well,” Nathan began, “I suggest we wait at the college. They’ve probably already busted into City Hall and it won’t take them long to figure out where we’ve gone.”

“What about Jacobs?” Matt asked, searching the crowd for himself.

“Haven’t seen him since we left,” Mohinder answered.

“He said he was going to take another look around,” Claire added. “We should wait.”

“No,” Nathan argued. “They’re going to be right behind us.”

“So go,” Matt urged. “We’ll wait.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” Mohinder said. “A few of us could stay behind. We really shouldn’t wait too long, not this big of a group at least.”

“Whatever you think,” Hiro put in, “but we need to go now. We’ll bring everyone to the college as soon as we can.”

Everyone knew it was true. There was nothing left to do but wish them luck and see them off.

“Be careful,” Claire said as she watched her two friends head up the steps.

“Alright everyone,” a familiar voice called out from somewhere near the front of the group, “let’s go. We’ve got to keep moving.”

It was Marissa, leading in Jacobs continued absence.

“Come on,” Mohinder said as the crowd began to move forward. “We don’t want to be too far behind.”

But neither Matt nor Claire had budged.

Matt was looking back down the tunnel with a curious expression.

“Has anyone seen Maggie?” he asked.

“Not for some time,” Mohinder admitted, “but there are a lot of us. She could be here and…”

“What about Micah?” Claire asked suddenly.

“He’s fine,” Nathan said immediately, but it didn’t sound nearly as positive as he’d wanted it to. “I’m sure…”

“We need to go back,” Matt said quickly. “There’s something...”

“Wrong,” Claire finished for him.

“Okay,” said Nathan, “I’ll go. I can be there and back…”

“No,” Matt interrupted.

“Why not?” Nathan asked back contemptuously. “Afraid I’m going to switch sides? Defect?”

“Actually, yes,” Matt returned. “That’s exactly what I was thinking.”

“Enough,” Mohinder said sharply. “The last of the colony is nearly out of sight. Whatever we do we need to do now.”

“Fine,” Matt conceded, “Claire and I will go back…”

“No,” said Nathan immediately. “No way. She’s not going back there. Not with you or anyone else.”

“Excuse me?” Claire asked. “I’ll go where I want to go.”

“It’s too dangerous,” Nathan protested. “Parkman, are you out of your mind?”

“Claire is just as capable of going as the rest of us,” Matt stated.

 _‘Thank you,’_ Claire thought.

Matt smiled, briefly, but said nothing more.

“We’ll all go,” Mohinder finally suggested.

“Someone needs to tell Marissa,” Nathan said.

 _‘Send her ahead, Parkman,’_ Nathan thought, looking directly at Matt so there was no mistake. _‘Don’t let her do this.’_

“Yeah,” Matt agreed, “that’s a good idea, Nathan. Why don’t you do that?”

“That’s not what I meant,” Nathan said through gritted teeth.

“I’ll go,” Mohinder finally conceded. “Just, hurry back.”

“We will,” Matt told him before the three set off back down the way they’d came.

Mohinder watched them until they’d disappeared in the darkness before turning to go himself; running to catch the rest of the colony.

****

“Well?”

“It’s secure,” Major Fuller told her with a nod. “The only place we haven’t checked yet is the basement. We believe they are down there but…”

“You just told me it was secure,” Jenny bit back at him.

“And it is, we just…”

“Then take me inside,” she interrupted, striding towards the building without further comment.

“Ms. Yi,” the man called out after her, only a few paces behind. “It isn’t safe.”

“But it’s secure?” she shot back.

“Well, yes,” he answered. “We found no one inside so…”

“No one?” she questioned, turning on the spot and stopping so quickly he nearly ran into her.

“We believe they are in the basement,” he continued. “That’s what I was trying to tell you. The inhibitors wouldn’t affect them down there.”

Jenny turned and looked back at the building. She was only about fifty feet from the entrance.

So close.

“Go in and drag them out,” Jenny said through clenched teeth. “I want this done. Now. Right now.”

With her back still to the building Jenny heard a few of the men begin to shout as they exited.

Fuller, ready to protect Jenny at all costs, took her by the arm and dragged her without ceremony behind where he stood to relative safety.

Jenny watched as two prisoners were brought out. To her dismay, neither of them were the ones she wanted. Just a talk dark haired woman dressed in black and a teenage boy whose hands bound and mouth was gagged.

Seeing the situation was under control, Fuller stepped aside and Jenny marched past him towards the prisoners.

“Well?” she asked one of the men.

“We saw them coming out of the basement,” he answered with a slight shake in his voice. “She says no one is down there, but I have a few men checking to be certain.”

Jenny’s gaze moved from him to the woman he held tightly by the arm.

She looked completely unafraid.

That would change.

“Who are you?” Jenny asked.

“I’m Maggie Jenson. I work for the Republic, for Davies.”

“Really?” Jenny asked, her very tone implying disbelief.

“It’s true,” Maggie urged, and now the fear was starting to show itself. “I’ve been spying for years on their orders.”

Jenny paused as if considering it.

“What are you going to do with him?” she asked, inclining her head towards Micah.

“Take him to them,” Maggie answered. “To Primatech. He’s gifted.”

“Are you gifted?” Jenny asked.

“Yes.”

“Let her go,” Jenny said with a crisp nod at the guard.

The man didn’t hesitate. He released his grasp and stepped away as he’d been told.

“So,” Jenny said, drawing the word out. “You’re a spy for the Republic. Interesting. Do you know a Martin Cameron?”

“Yes,” Maggie said eagerly, “he works…”

She stopped cold and the fear was back.

“At the Order?” Jenny finished for her. “He spies for the Republic at the Order. That’s what you almost said, isn’t it? It’s okay, I know. I already know.”

“You’re not…”

“Supposed to know?” Jenny asked. “Oh, I know that too. Martin you see met a rather untimely end.”

“He’s dead?”

“Were you close?” Jenny asked instead of answered.

“He’s… You’re not going to get away with this,” Maggie said, suddenly angry. “The Republic can destroy you. They made you what you are and they can take it away.”

“See,” Jenny answered, “you’re only half right there. They did make me what I am, but they can’t take it back. And they know that. That was their mistake.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that I know about their little experiment,” Jenny answered. “I know what they are planning on doing.”

Maggie stared at her, dumbfounded.

“Don’t you?” Jenny asked. “No, of course not. If they told all their peons, who would they get to help? Because if you knew what they had in store, you’d be fighting back. Resisting. And they can’t have that, can they?”

“You’re insane,” Maggie said, shaking her head. “Delusional. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You’re hardly the first to tell me that,” Jenny said with an odd laugh.

“They’ll find out what you’re doing,” argued Maggie. “They’ll find out you’ve betrayed them and then…”

Jenny didn’t let her finish. As Maggie had spoken, Jenny had casually removed her sidearm, cocked it and fired point blank into the other woman’s head.

The only person that flinched or reacted at all was the other prisoner still standing nearby.

“They won’t find out from you,” Jenny said looking down at the body crumbled at her feet.

She next turned to the teenage boy and motioned for the man holding him to remove his bonds.

“What’s your name?” Jenny asked.

He was fixated on the body as if he was in shock.

“I asked you a question,” Jenny said harshly, “and I really hate repeating myself.”

“Micah,” he just managed. “Micah Sanders.”

“So, Micah,” Jenny continued. “How old are you?”

“Fifteen.”

Jenny nodded, again as if she was considering something.

“Do you know what she was going to do with you?”

“No,” Micah answered honestly. “But from what she told you, I guess take me to Primatech. She said…”

He stopped as if he thought better of giving her a complete answer.

“What did she say?”

“That they were interested in me. In what I can do.”

“What can you do?” she asked.

“I can talk with machines.”

“Really?” Jenny said, her eyes lighting up. “So you’re the one we have to keep locking out of our systems, right?”

“Yes,” he said with a nervous nod.

“Do you know what I can do?” she asked. “Who I am?”

“Yes,” he said.

“How do you know?” Jenny asked with a wicked smile.

“My friends… My friends told me.”

Jenny’s smile grew wider.

“Good,” she said after a heavy pause. “Let him go.”

“Ma’am?” the guard questioned, uncertain he’d heard her correctly.

“I said let him go,” Jenny repeated harshly. “And don’t follow him. Let him go and leave him alone. I like this kid. He’s the first honest person I’ve met in a very long time.”

The man let go of his arm and Micah looked as if he didn’t believe it was true.

“Go,” Jenny urged. “And don’t come back here. Find your family, your friends. Quick before I change my mind.”

Micah nodded briefly before bolting down the steps and off towards the Market.

“Was that really…”

“Are you questioning me?”

“No,” Major Fuller said quickly. “I’m just curious. If he goes back to his friends…”

“His friends are either going to come looking for him or he’ll bring them back to us,” Jenny explained. “Either way, we’ll get what we want.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because I know who his friends are,” Jenny answered.  



	17. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 21: Insanity**

Micah hurried out of sight of the Order’s army as he headed towards the Market, unconsciously tracing Lauren’s first trip there earlier that night.

His plan was to go just far enough one way before doubling back towards the Common and the Boylston subway stop he knew the colony would be passing through.

Instead of heading north on Congress, Micah headed south running as fast as his feet would carry him.

Just before he was about to make a turn west a voice called out and startled him.

“What are you doing here?” Hiro asked, practically appearing out of nowhere and catching him by the arm.

“Me?” Micah asked back in shock, gasping for breath. “What about you? Isn’t the colony headed for the college?”

“Lauren and I are going back to the Market for your mom and the rest,” Hiro explained.

“How did you end up here?” Lauren asked.

“Maggie,” Micah said with a brutal shake of his head. “Maggie is one of them. She was going to take me to the Republic. Turn me in.”

“And you got away?” Hiro asked in surprise.

“Not exactly,” explained Micah. “We were heading out of City Hall when the Order… I don’t know what she was thinking. Apparently she never really listened to Mohinder or Claire talk about her… Insanity. Just insanity.”

“What?” Lauren asked, beginning to worry about Micah’s state of mind. He was rambling and nearly unintelligible.

“Jenny Yi,” Micah finally came out with. “She was there. She talked with Maggie and then just… she just shot her like it was nothing. I watched Maggie kill…”

Micah choked on the words, clearly being overcome by the events of the last few hours.

“Maggie killed Jacobs,” he finally managed. “She killed him and she killed that woman Nathan brought in. But this… when Jenny killed Maggie, it was different. It was like batting an eye to her. Less than that. It was so easy. She didn’t hesitate, didn’t flinch. She’s crazy.”

“Jacobs is dead?” Lauren asked softly, having never gotten past that part of Micah’s tale.

Micah nodded gravely. So much was happening, changing so fast.

“Are you sure?” Hiro had to ask, he had to question it. It was too difficult to believe.

“I saw her do it.”

“What now?” Lauren asked, turning to Hiro for guidance.

He considered it.

They could go to City Hall and confront Jenny, but that would be suicide. They were too outnumbered for a full fight against the Order. And Jenny, from everything he’d heard, was just as Micah described her; crazy. She’d kill them all without remorse and without reason if she wanted to.

They could also go back to the colony. Tell them what had happened to Jacobs. Explain what Maggie was and how she’d died. But then again, the colony knew the Order was here. They were fleeing the Order right now. Knowing Jenny was also present would probably just add to the confusion and terror. Jenny was quickly achieving cult status, her legend growing. Telling the colony she was here, hunting them down and that Jacobs had been killed might do more harm than good.

And of course, they had a mission. Hiro and Lauren had set out to bring the rest of their friends back. Everything else could wait. It had to.

“We have to keep on going,” he said after a lengthy pause. “Micah, come with us. It’s too dangerous to go back alone and we need to get to the Market. Are you up for this?”

Micah nodded.

“Here. Take this,” Lauren said, handing him the extra handgun she’d been carrying. “You know how to use it?”

“You’ve met my mom, right?”

Lauren gave him a faint smile.

“Let’s go,” Hiro said.

****

They’d waited at the entrance of the building until the helicopters had flown out of sight.

The first order of business was to check on Sylar, to see if he was still alive or even if he was still there. If the helicopters they’d just seen were from the Republic they might have seen him and picked him up.

“Maybe we should split up,” Niki suggested. “A few of us go and check the Market, just to be safe, while the rest go and scope out City Hall. See what we’re up against.”

“Sounds reasonable,” Peter admitted.

“Good,” Niki said quickly before he could continue. “Me, Franco and Ando will check around here while the rest of you cut through Government Center…”

“No,” interrupted Peter. “No. Niki, if anyone stays here…”

“It isn’t going to be you,” Niki finished for him. “Last time I had to shake you out of whatever effect Sylar has on you. We can’t risk that again. If he’s around, if he’s even alive, he’s not at City Hall.”

“She’s right,” D.L. agreed, even if he didn’t like the idea of being separated from his wife, he understood her logic. “It won’t take us long to get over there and see what we’re up against. See if it’s even possible to get in and get anyone out. We’ll meet back here in half an hour. Less than that. It could take less than that even.”

Peter looked from Audrey to Franco. Both seemed onboard with the plan, willing to give it a go. Ando was the only one that didn’t register any emotion either way. He was too preoccupied with his own thoughts and worries to care much about what would happen next.

“Okay,” Peter said, “just one change. Franco, I’ll need you to come with us. We’ll need you to take a look inside, maybe even through some things just to see what’s really there.”

Franco nodded immediately.

“Good thinking.”

“I’ll go with Niki then,” D.L. offered immediately.

“Alright,” Peter agreed. “We’ll meet back here in half an hour. Got it?”

Everyone nodded and Peter watched Niki, D.L. and Ando walk around the building and out of sight.

“Let’s make this quick,” Peter said to Franco and Audrey as he walked briskly towards Government Center. “I just want to take a quick look and get back.”

“You don’t think he’s dead,” Audrey said flatly, taking in as much of their surroundings as she could in the near and complete darkness.

“No,” answered Peter. “I don’t think he can die.”

“Everyone can die,” Franco returned.

Peter didn’t comment.

He really couldn’t explain why he felt so connected to Sylar, why he knew he was still out there, but he did. It was almost as if Peter could feel him, could feel his presence. As if his power was somehow reliant upon Sylar’s.

And that was unsettling, very unsettling.

And he wasn’t dead. Peter knew it would take a lot more than what he’d done to finally end Sylar; that it might take a lot more than he had in him, but it had to be done. Sylar had to die. No matter the cost.

It was strange how the world could change, how it could change you. Peter never thought of himself as a pacifist, never even really considered himself a humanitarian, but he’d always thought life, all life, was sacred.

Before any of this the thought of taking a life would have been abhorrent to him.

And now?

Now it was something that had to be done.

Sylar wouldn’t stop. He would hunt him down, all of them. Sylar would take them all one by one until he had all the power he could hold.

Peter wasn’t going to kill Sylar because he wanted to. He wasn’t doing it for revenge, or justice, or even for fate. He was doing it for survival.

If they wanted to survive, Sylar had to die.

“Wait,” Franco said, stopping both Audrey and Peter in their tracks. “I see something.”

“What?” Audrey whispered.

“There’s a lot of movement in the front of the building,” Franco said, straining for a better look. “It’s so dark… but I think those are troops. I think they’ve got guns.”

“What about inside?” Peter asked.

“Nothing,” Franco answered. “No… No wait… there are a few people on the first floor… I’m not sure what they’re doing though…”

“Anyone else?”

Franco shook his head to Audrey’s question.

“Where could they be?” Peter asked this time.

“Maybe they got out,” Audrey suggested. “Got away?”

“Or were taken away,” Peter said darkly.

“No,” Franco dismissed. “They’d need transport. We haven’t seen any buses or trucks. They couldn’t air lift the entire colony out on those helicopters.”

Peter sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

“Let’s get a little closer,” Franco suggested. “Maybe I can…”

He stopped cold, having scanned the ground below the building briefly.

“I think they might be in the basement,” he said quietly. “There are lights on there and…”

Franco stopped and shook his head in disbelief.

“What?” Peter asked quickly. “What’s wrong? What’s happened?”

“There’s a body. There are two militia men moving a body.”

“Who?” Audrey asked fearfully, positive Franco knew who and was only hesitating to spare them.

“It’s Jacobs,” he answered after a pause. “They’re taking him upstairs.”

“No,” Peter dismissed. “It can’t be. Jacobs…”

“It’s him,” Franco repeated. “It is. I’m sorry.”

“Is there anyone else?” asked Audrey, her voice still uneasy.

“No one I see,” Franco answered. “But there is… there’s a hole in the wall… on the far wall, near the front of the building. Jacobs must have dug them out and then… I don’t know. Stayed behind? Maybe he was going to close it.”

“A hole?” Peter asked in confusion, and then it dawned on him. “The subway. They got out through the subway. That’s why there is no one else inside. No transportation. Okay. Okay, let’s get back. We know now what…”

“Wait,” Audrey objected. “The subway? Are you sure?”

“Yes,” Peter said immediately. “There’s a stop right in front of the City Hall.”

“But where…”

“We’ll worry about where later,” Peter interrupted her. “Right now, we need to get back to the others and then find our way into those tunnels. We can figure out which line subway line stops there and follow it to them.”

“Won’t the Order do the same?” Franco asked.

“Probably,” admitted Peter, “but we’ll have to take that chance.”

****

“He’s gone,” Niki said without surprise as they came across the spot where they’d left Sylar.

“Now what?” D.L. asked.

“Let’s check the hotel,” Niki suggested. “He may have gone inside.”

“Are you nuts?” D.L. asked. “You want to go looking for him?”

“I want to know where he is,” Niki answered. “I’d rather we found him than the other way around.”

D.L. shrugged, hating the idea, but willing to go along with it for now. Knowing Niki, if he didn’t, she’d just go by herself anyway.

They got a few feet away before realizing that Ando wasn’t following them.

“Ando,” Niki called out, clearly irritated. “Come on.”

Ando didn’t move; his eyes clearly focused on the Market.

“We’re wasting…” Niki started to say before D.L. shushed her.

He walked back to where Ando stood.

“What is it?” he asked quietly.

“Do you see that?” Ando asked, refusing to point. He didn’t want to draw attention their way but feared it was already too late.

The man he had spotted in the doorway of Quincy Market was watching them; cautiously watching them.

“How long?” D.L. asked.

“I don’t know,” Ando answered as Niki joined them. “A few minutes. I saw the movement and…”

Without warning the three of them were each knocked back several feet, thrown to the ground as if by some unseen hand.

Ando felt dazed; tasted blood in his mouth, having bit his lip when he’d landed.

There was just enough time to get up before Sylar arrived, standing a few feet away. The closest any of them had been to him. The first time they’d gotten a good look at him in five years time.

“Who wants to be first?” he asked with a faint smile.  



	18. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 22: Evolution**

He had fled.

Years early, during the battle, he had fled.

No. That wasn’t right. He hadn’t fled, he’d fought. He’d fought and won.

But if that was true, why was Peter Petrelli still alive?

Sylar didn’t know.

He didn’t know and he couldn’t understand, but that wasn’t important right now. He didn’t care for all of those forgotten years, all those years lost; he cared about what was happening right now.

About catching up.

He had a lot to catch up on. A lot of new skills and abilities to absorb and use. Unworthy beings to conquer.

Petrelli he could take care of later.

Right now he had his sights set on the three before him.

Only two of them were special, had talents for Sylar to collect; the other he could do away with however he chose.

The third one was insignificant.

Pushing them back, knocking them off their feet was simple. Almost too simple. It really wasn’t fair, but Sylar didn’t care about. This was evolution. Survival of the fittest.

Sylar was the epitome of that statement.

Adapt or die.

They were up quick, ready to meet their fate with a fight.

“Who wants to be first?” he asked.

“Go to hell,” said the woman immediately in response.

For a split second he thought she was going to charge him. That she was actually going to try and attack. That this woman might be as crazy as Petrelli was.

But she didn’t.

Instead she took hold of each man by the forearm and hauled them backwards; she began to pull them away as if they could escape.

Foolish.

There would be no escape.

Sylar just thought it, a simple thought, and the three of them were lifted into the air and hurled towards the building at an astonishing speed.

He’d only been playing when he’d knocked them over before, but this time he was serious. This time Sylar wanted them to hurt. He wanted them to know exactly who they were dealing with.

However, instead of hitting the wall and crumpling to the ground in a broken heap as he’d planned, the three of them had simply sailed straight through it.

One of them could phase.

Sylar smiled.

This was going to be fun.

He held up his hands before him as if taking hold of something. And he was. In his mind’s eye Sylar was taking hold of the wall, the entire wall before him and ripping it out of place. He could see it clearly in his thoughts and instinctively knew what needed to be done.

And so it was.

Sylar pulled the entire wall off the building in one clean piece, a few bricks tumbling down, but mostly it was intact and hovering a few feet from where it once held firm.

He pulled it off and away, and then up and overhead so that it flew behind him, landing with a crash some two hundred yards or more from where he stood.

The three people inside looked horrified.

“Run,” the woman yelled to her companions, not bothering to turn and face them. “Go get help!”

“Help?” asked Sylar, stepping through the debris. “There is no help.”

“Run!” she repeated, standing up straighter and seemingly resolved on facing him alone.

“Niki…”

“Damn it, D.L., go!”

Sylar turned his gaze momentarily to the man who was refusing to leave. The one she’d called D.L. and pushed him hard mentally.

The man sailed backwards, and as Sylar expected, through several walls.

Niki, the woman was called Niki, glared at him. Her look was so cold, so calculating, that had he been capable of it Sylar might have momentarily feared her.

Before he could contemplate what it meant, what her gift might be, multiple shots rang out.

The other one.

Sylar had nearly forgotten him, the insignificant one without a power.

He didn’t have a power but he did have a gun.

The first shot slid past his shoulder and Sylar was surprised. He’d let his guard down. It was a foolish mistake, but one he wouldn’t make again.

The other three shots he stopped immediately with ease. It happened that quickly.

Using the distraction to her advantage, the woman did as he’d first expected her to do; she charged.

First, he took care of the man. Knocking him back as hard as he could. Satisfied only when he heard a sickening thud. A blow so hard the wall rattled around him.

Then, the woman.

Sylar stopped her just half a foot away. Close enough so he could get a look at her. Close enough so she’d know just how wrong she’d been.

There she stood, unmoving on the outside but positively seething on the inside. Still watching him with her eyes as she let out harsh, rasping breaths.

“I don’t want to waste my time,” he said as he leaned in, practically whispering in her ear. “What do you do? What makes you so special?”

He knew she couldn’t answer, Sylar hadn’t made it possible. Right now he had stopped her cold, left her wide open to assimilation. She was completely at his mercy.

It was fun.

“Maybe you’ll be lucky and I won’t want it?” he continued to prod. “Maybe I’ll let…”

He’d done it again.

Maybe he was just out of practice, or maybe it was because he’d never really faced so many people before, but he’d let his guard down once more. Sylar hadn’t been expecting others, hadn’t been expecting anything like resistance.

So finding himself on the ground several feet from where he’d just been standing was something of a shock.

“Get back!”

Sylar looked towards the new voice and recognized the face.

Getting back on his feet he saw the blond woman, Niki, stepping backwards on shaky feet.

Like him, she was looking at the new arrivals with something like dread on her face.

“No,” she said, her voice starting as a whisper before quickly growing in volume. “No, run! Go!”

“You should listen to her,” Sylar echoed.

The dark haired woman didn’t stop. She was still a good hundred feet away as she fired off two more shields in an effort to keep Sylar at bay.

This time he wasn’t distracted.

“I thought I killed you already,” he said, striding forward and easily knocking aside everything she sent his way.

“You did,” she returned with a somewhat unsteady voice.

“Too bad you didn’t stay that way.”

“Too bad for you,” she returned and then, in a blink, she was gone.

****

D.L. had never run faster before in his life.

He passed through wall after wall, running at top speed, until he finally reached the street on the other side of the building.

It was only then that he paused momentarily to regain his bearings. Boston wasn’t a city you could know overnight, but he had the advantage there. They’d been living in this building and the ones surrounding it for a year and a half. He knew this place well. After a second or two of contemplation D.L. turned in the direction he knew with almost a complete certainty would be the way Peter, Audrey and Franco would be coming from.

He wasted no time.

Taking the straightest path possible, D.L. passed over and through things as if they didn’t exist.

The only thing he could think of was Sylar.

Sylar was back there with his wife and his friend right now.

D.L. was so intent on getting help, on stopping what was surely happening at this very moment, he almost ran straight past the very people he was looking for.

“Peter,” he yelled, coming to an abrupt stop and doubling over in an effort to catch his breath. “Peter.”

“What’s happened?” asked Peter immediately, leaning down to access him; to see if he was hurt in any way.

“Sylar,” D.L. panted. “He’s back. He’s with Niki and Ando. We’ve… we’ve got to go… help them.”

“Where?” Franco asked.

“The hotel… He caught up with us at the hotel,” D.L. answered, standing up straight once more but still breathing in short rapid breaths.

“Is everyone…”

“For now,” D.L. interrupted before the question could be fully formed. “When I left they were… We’ve got to hurry.”

“And do what?” Audrey asked.

It wasn’t an unfair question. D.L. hadn’t really considered it before. What did he expect them to do?

“Stop him,” Peter said automatically, as if it was that simple.

****

“Faster,” Hiro urged the group as they ran into the Market.

It had taken far too long to get them together and organized.

Niki had been nearly hysterical to see Micah with them, not that Hiro blamed her for it. It was perfectly understandable.

But it had taken too long.

Between Niki and Ando, it had taken entirely too long.

Ando was barely conscious and had to be supported between both Hiro and Lauren. At best he had a concussion. They were all just relieved to see him moving at all after the hit he’d sustained.

Still, Hiro knew he wouldn’t be able to keep time frozen for much longer.

“Stop,” Hiro called out suddenly.

“Which is it?” Niki questioned. “Stop or go faster?”

“Stop,” Hiro repeated, indicating to Lauren to help lower Ando to the ground before firing off a few words in rapid Japanese.

“Is he okay?” asked Lauren uneasily, looking from one man to the next.

“He needs to rest,” Hiro answered. “We have to stop.”

“We can’t stop,” Niki said. “He’s right out there. Sylar. He’s right…”

“Ando can’t go on,” Hiro repeated.

Niki looked momentarily shocked before nodding her head briskly.

“You can go on,” Hiro said after a brief silence. “You, Micah and Lauren. Go. I’ll stay and…”

“I’m not going,” Lauren interrupted. “I’m not leaving him… Not like this.”

“No,” Niki agreed. “No, we can’t do that. We…”

“It’ll be alright,” Hiro urged. “Take Micah. Go to the college. The rest of the colony will be waiting for you. That way you can tell them what is happening.”

“Mom…” Micah started to protest.

“Go,” Hiro urged once more.

Niki took one last look at Ando and then towards the door they’d just come through. The door that led outside, back towards Sylar.

“I’ll be back,” she said. “I’ll bring help. I promise.”

“We’ll be okay,” Hiro assured her.

Niki nodded not looking entirely convinced.

“I’m not sure how long I can keep things stopped for you or for any of us,” Hiro continued. “Or how far you can be from me before it wears off, but you should have a good head start.”

“Okay,” said Niki, looking down so that the tears forming in her eyes wouldn’t show.

Niki felt horribly ashamed of herself for leaving, but she had no choice. She had to look after Micah; do what was best for him. And what was best for him was no doubt getting as far away from Sylar as was possible.

Still, it didn’t ease the guilt, especially not considering how bad off she knew Ando must be. That he might not make it. Not even might, probably. Ando was probably already dying.

“You should hurry,” Hiro said, a small smile on his lips. “Don’t worry about us.”

“Thank you,” said Niki in a surprisingly small voice before she turned to go, taking Micah by the hand.

Hiro and Lauren watched them depart, silently wishing them luck before turning back to one another.

“Now what?” asked Lauren.  



	19. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 23: Murder**

They stood outside the tunnel that led back into City Hall for a few moments and listened. There was no way of telling, short of actually heading in, whether or not anyone was waiting on the other side.

It wasn’t entirely implausible that the building was empty. But, the Order had had plenty of time to break through by now, especially given they’d had met no resistance. However, the absolute quiet they encountered seemed to suggest otherwise.

“Well?” Nathan questioned in a haughty tone. “You wanted to go check. Go check.”

Matt let out a huff of air before giving him a curt nod in return.

“What? Alone?” Claire said astonished, pulling him back by the arm before he’d gotten more than two steps away. “You’re not going in alone.”

“I’ll be five minutes,” Matt tried to assure her, but she wasn’t having it.

“No,” she argued. “I’ll go with you.”

“Claire, it’s not…”

“I’m going with you,” she interrupted.

“Fine,” Matt agreed, annoyed that she wasn’t willing to let him do this alone, but not wanting to stand there for the rest of the night arguing over it where they were certain to be heard.

“This is quite possibly the worst idea I have ever heard of,” Nathan said, shaking his head and looking at the ground as if they couldn’t hear him at all.

And really, it was like they couldn’t. Neither of them was listening to Nathan. Both of them were equally determined to have their own way.

Matt slowly crept down the tunnel as quiet as he could be; Claire right behind him and Nathan, against his own inclination and common sense, right behind her.

When they reached the building, Matt held up a hand indicating that Claire should stay back as he scanned the room and took a quick look down the adjacent hallway.

“I think we’re alright,” he whispered.

“Where do you think Jacobs is?” asked Claire.

“I don’t know,” Matt said, turning once around the room as an odd look crossed his face.

“Well,” Nathan snapped, “we can see he’s not in here, Parkman. Don’t you think we might want to check…”

“Shut up,” Matt barked. “I can… Someone else is down here. I can… I can hear them. They’re not far off, but…”

Matt trailed off, taking another look around the room as if he expected the unknown person to suddenly pop out at them.

“But what?” asked Nathan. “This is getting pretty ridiculous if you ask me.”

“No one asked you,” Claire retorted, annoyed by his attitude.

“No,” Nathan agreed. “Of course not. Why would you? I’m the traitor, right? The one that’s going to turn you all in.”

“Shut up,” Matt repeated in a harsh whisper. “I can’t hear anything with you constantly whining.”

“Exactly,” Claire added, earning a look from Matt that clearly meant he needed her silence as well.

The three of them stood there, silent for a several minutes before Nathan couldn’t take it any longer.

“Well?” he asked.

“I think…” Matt began hesitantly. “I think we should go. There’s something… I can’t…”

“What?” Nathan questioned. “You can’t hear them or you can’t understand? What exactly are you listening for?”

“Something,” Matt answered vaguely.

Nathan stared at him for a half a minute before shaking his head.

“You have, quite possibly, the most good-for-nothing power. Ever.”

“I can’t explain it, okay?” Matt snapped in return. “I can hear it, but it’s not clear. Like whoever it is is either too far away or… or I don’t know. They don’t want me to… I can’t explain it, but I don’t like it and we should go. Something down here is wrong.”

“What about Jacobs?” Claire asked, clearly concerned.

“We can’t risk it,” Matt answered, upset but knowing it was the truth.

“Great,” said Nathan eagerly, “let’s go. If we hurry…”

He stopped mid-sentence as the three of them heard, quite clearly, what sounded like a moan of pain from not too far away.

Both Claire and Nathan turned to Matt, waiting for him to provide the details.

“Was that…” began Claire, but she stopped quickly seeing the look of concentration on Matt’s face.

“Micah?” Matt whispered, moving to the far wall.

“It’s Micah?” Claire repeated in shock. “Is he okay? What’s… Is he hurt?”

“I don’t…”

But Claire didn’t wait for him to finish, bolting from the room and down the hallway in the direction Matt had leaned towards.

“Claire!” Matt yelled, rushing to follow her and uncaring if he was heard by anyone else now. “Wait! I don’t know! I can’t tell…”

Matt finally caught her stopped in a doorway, frozen in place and looking into what had once been the radio room.

The scene before them was startling.

There was Micah, sprawled out on the floor in a pool of blood, seemingly lifeless.

“No,” Claire whispered, her voice hoarse. “How could we forget? How could we…. I thought he was ahead of us. I thought he left… We left without him? How? How?”

Matt was too stunned to reply.

“We can’t stay here,” Nathan said, startling the both of them who hadn’t been aware he’d followed them in the first place. “Whoever did this…”

“It’s not too late,” Claire interrupted resolutely. “It’s not. We just heard him. We did. Matt, you heard him. I can… I can save him. I can. I can make this right.”

“Claire,” Nathan said, his voice full of a surprising amount of compassion. “I don’t think…”

But it was too late to change her mind; Claire was already moving into the room. She was already determined to try.

She only got a few steps away, just out of arms reach, when Matt felt it.

Matt felt that familiar lurch that, until then, he’d been unable to place. The intangible thing that had made him want to leave in the first place.

“Claire, no!” he screamed as he lunged after her a moment too late.

He got a foot in the door as the scenery shifted; before he saw the body of Micah sit up amid shimmering waves, like an oasis, and change into someone else entirely.

He was just too late.

The sharp sound of gunfire ripped through the air and Matt, who had been intent on catching Claire before the worst happened, instead had to be content with catching Claire before she hit the floor.

It wasn’t until then, until the gunfire, that Nathan really knew what was wrong. As he saw Claire collapse into Matt’s arms, Nathan flew forward with amazing speed that only lasted half a second before being shut down entirely, and nearly sending him toppling to the floor over the sudden loss of momentum.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Jenny Yi said calmly, standing where the body of their friend had once been seen, as she leveled the gun at Nathan. “Then again, if I were you, I’d have never come back in the first place. Sometimes I just think you make this all too easy.”

Nathan straightened himself up, staring at the woman he despised; the woman that had killed his wife. Hate wasn’t a strong enough word for what he felt.

“What’s the matter, Mr. Petrelli? Don’t you have anything to say to me?”

Nathan, despite the fact that Jenny had the obvious advantage, took a threatening step in her direction.

Jenny only laughed.

“What are you going to do?” she asked, gun still raised. “Hit me? Yell at me? Curse my existence? You made me, Nathan. You and Primatech. And it’s true, you reap what you sow. If anyone deserves what’s coming to them, it’s you.”

“Kill me then,” Nathan said evenly. “Kill me and let…”

“Oh,” interrupted Jenny with a harsh laugh, the venom underlying it unmistakable, “now you’re noble! It’s almost too much to take. Let them go? Are you kidding? They’re the reason I’m here. You’re the afterthought. The icing on the cake. You’re the dispensable one. I don’t need you. No one does. How’s that feel?”

“Turn it off.”

Jenny’s expression changed as she looked from Nathan to Matt, still on the floor with Claire in his arms.

“Turn it off,” he repeated, his voice firm but full of emotion. “The inhibitor. I know what… She can’t… She’s dying. She can’t heal herself. Turn it off. Now.”

“You didn’t say the magic word,” Jenny said without any hint of a smile.

“You want me to beg?” Matt asked, looking back at Claire whose eyes were still open and filled with pain; too much pain to speak. “Fine. I’m begging you, please. Please turn it off. I’ll…”

“I want to know where the colony went,” Jenny said before he could finish.

“Boston University.”

Jenny looked back at Nathan, actually surprised he’d spoken up first.

“That’s where they were headed,” Nathan continued, “but I doubt they actually…”

“Liar,” Jenny whispered with an evil smile on her face.

“I’m telling you…”

“A lie,” she finished for him. “Just because you can’t use your power doesn’t mean I can’t still use mine.”

Still smiling, Jenny pulled down the top of her shirt just enough to reveal what looked like a metallic black choker hung low across her neck.

“This,” she explained, “is a little something I had made just for me. It blocks the inhibitor. It lets me still do what I do so well when everyone around me is dead in the water. Pretty neat, right?”

Nathan blinked in surprise but tried to show no further emotion.

“So I know,” Jenny continued, “I know you’re lying. I can see it in your head. Boston University. That’s where they are. There was no change…”

“Okay,” Matt interrupted, “you know. You know what you want now…”

“First things first,” Jenny said as several armed men moved into the room with them. “Put these on.”

Nathan and Matt were each handed similar devices to the one worn by Jenny.

“I’m not…” Nathan began to protest only to be quickly cut off by Matt.

“Do it,” he nearly ordered, having already gotten his in place.

Nathan hesitated a moment longer before finally complying.

As soon as his clicked into place, Jenny nodded at her man stationed at the entrance of the room. Half a second after that, Claire took in a long, shuddery breath, and Matt was overjoyed to see her wound begin to stitch itself up of it’s own accord.

“Why?” Claire asked Matt, ignoring the rest of the room. “Why’d you do that? Why…”

“I wasn’t going to let you die. Not when I could still…”

Claire shook her head in disbelief effectively cutting him off.

“Don’t you see what she’s going to do? Don’t you get it? You should have just…”

“Enough,” Jenny said harshly, drawing Claire’s attention away. “Everyone up. Let’s go. We’ve got lots to do and one more of your friends to pick up.”

“I’m not going with you,” Claire returned stubbornly. “I’m not doing anything you tell me to do. No. I won’t.”

Jenny pulled her roughly out of Matt’s grasp and thrust her towards one of her armed guards.

“Cuff her,” she ordered, “and Petrelli and take them to the helicopter. Matt and I need some privacy.”

“No,” said Claire, clearly alarmed. “No!”

“It’s alright,” he urged. “Just go. I’ll be fine, Claire. Just…”

“I’m not leaving you with her,” Claire argued, doing her best to pull free and fight.

“Claire,” Matt said, his voice as near panic as she’d ever heard it. “Go. I’ll be fine. Don’t do anything to make…”

“Yeah, Claire,” Jenny said, a sarcastic smile gracing her lips. “Don’t make me mad. Matt will be fine, I promise.”

“Come on,” Nathan whispered, seeing there was nothing to gain by fighting and hoping Claire would as well. “It’ll be okay.”

Claire locked eyes with Matt one last time, and even without the telepathy she knew what he was thinking.

Nodding as she blinked back the tears in her eyes, Claire finally stopped fighting and let them lead her out of the room leaving Matt and Jenny alone.

“Wow,” Jenny said flatly. “That’s quite the fan club you’ve got there. I had no idea.”

“What do you want?”

“Why do you think I want something?”

“Because you always want something.”

“No ‘hello’? No ‘nice to see you’ for me?” Jenny asked with a straight face. “I thought we were friends.”

“What do you want?”

“How do you like my device?” Jenny asked instead. “Works great, right? As soon as the Republic sent us the first inhibitors I had my men working on creating not only a portable one, like you’ve got, but something to counter it. Smart, huh?”

Matt didn’t say anything.

“I’ve been making a lot of changes…”

“What do you want?” Matt interrupted, emphasizing each word as much as possible; already tired of her games.

“I need you.”

Matt shook his head, looking at the floor unable to suppress his surprise.

“There is so much you can teach me,” Jenny said in earnest, the glee in her voice barely contained. “So much you can show me. I’ve learned a lot on my own, discovered an incredible amount of things, but with you…”

“You know I’m not going to help you”

“Yes you will,” Jenny said arrogantly. “You will. Like it or not, you’ll help me.”

“No, I won’t.”

“Really?” she questioned. “Not even…”

“You can do whatever you want to me,” Matt interrupted, “but I will not help you.”

“You’re so easy,” she said with a smile. “So very, very easy. Oh, Matt, I’ve missed that about you. Come on, I know that already. I’m not stupid. I know how strong you are. Brave. Noble. Blah, blah, blah. Such a man, always out to prove something. Give me some credit.”

Matt met her gaze feeling suddenly unnerved by the icy resolve he saw in it.

“I’m not going to touch a hair on your head,” Jenny said coolly. “I promise. But, as for poor, sweet, innocent, little Claire? I can’t promise she...”

“If you so much as touch her, I swear, I’ll…”

“You’ll what?” Jenny said, stepping closer to him suddenly. Invading his space. Her eyes eager and alive. “What will you do? Hurt me? Stop me? What, Matt? How?”

“Leave her out of this,” Matt said after a considerable pause. “She can’t do anything for you. I’m…”

“She could buy me time,” Jenny said. “I could always give her to the Republic. To Primatech. You know what it’s like. You want her to go through that? What her to experience first hand…”

“No,” Matt said quickly. “No. Don’t…”

“You’d do anything for her, wouldn’t you? Anything.”

Matt said nothing, knowing it was better that way. That any answer he gave would only be used against him. Also knowing she didn’t need an answer. Jenny could already see inside his head.

“Anything,” Jenny repeated. “It was you, not Nathan, that told me. In your mind. Boston University. Confirming it with every thought. You practically screamed it out to me. You traded how many lives for hers? Was it worth it? Why does she… ”

“Why are you doing this?”

“Because I can.”

“You can’t… You can’t threaten me with her forever,” Matt tried instead. “You can only…”

“That’s not true,” Jenny said before he could finish. “You know it. I can kill her as many times as I want to. Slowly. Painfully. Bring her back, over and over, and do it all again. In front of you. Make you watch. Make you help even. Want to? We can start now. I can call her back right now and…”

“No.”

“Are you sure?”

“Stop it, Jenny.”

She smiled, glad he could still feel it. That he could still feel the sensation of her inside his head even with the inhibitor in place.

“What do you want?” Matt asked again. “What is it you really want?”

“I told you,” she answered. “I want you. I need you in more ways than you can even imagine. And, you don’t know it yet, but you need me too. Together we can do great things.”

Matt looked at the ground, determined not to let her see how angry he was. How very angry he was at her and at himself. He didn’t want her to know how she affected him. How much he wished…

“Oh, Matt,” Jenny sighed almost lovingly. “What’s that I see?”

He shook his head, trying to rid himself of the image. Feeling her inside his head with him and hating it. Hating the feeling but completely defenseless against the intrusion.

Jenny laughed as she dug deeper.

“Is that murder in your heart?” she asked playfully. “I didn’t think you had it in you. I’m flattered. So sweet. Am I your first?”

Matt tried harder to shake it, but couldn’t. She had him and she knew it.

“This is going to be so much fun,” she said, her voice just above a whisper. “We’re going to have such a good time, you and I. I can hardly wait.”  



	20. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 24: Encounter**

“At the first sign of trouble, Franco, I want you and Audrey to go,” Peter said as he continued to walk at a brisk pace just behind D.L. who was leading the way. “Head back towards City Hall and stay out of the Order’s sight. If you can, find the rest of the colony, but I don’t want you taking risks you don’t have to.”

“Why…”

“Because neither of you can pull out of Sylar’s grasp,” Peter answered Audrey before she’d even finished the question, reminding her strongly of Matt.

“What are you going to do?” Franco asked.

“Stop him.”

“How?” Audrey asked, now nearly at a run to keep pace.

“Any way I can,” Peter answered without looking back.

****

“Maybe you should go.”

Hiro looked over at Lauren with surprise clearly written across his face.

They’d moved to the classroom and had started to barricade the doors. It was a basement level room, which gave them a bit of an advantage they thought. Sylar might overlook it. That and it had three exits. Two that led to the street and one that led to a storage room before leading up to the main part of the building.

That was the exit they were leaving open as their escape route.

Time had caught up with them again.

“You can still stop time for yourself. You still have a chance…”

“I’m not leaving either of you behind,” Hiro said.

Lauren sighed, turning once around the room and slowly shaking her head.

“You think I’m wrong?” Hiro asked, finally stopping and coming over to where she stood. “You think I should abandon you and Ando here? Leave my friends to die?”

“Someone should survive,” Lauren answered with a desperate laugh. “I just think… You have a chance. Maybe you should at least…”

“No,” Hiro said, shaking his head firmly.

“Okay,” Lauren reluctantly agreed. “So, now what? Do we wait it out? Wait for the rest of the group to find us? What… What if he finds us here first?”

Hiro stopped suddenly and then quickly moved to the main entrance. Without any explanation he began removing the desks and shelves they’d used to block the door at a near manic pace.

“What are you doing?” Lauren asked, shocked.

“I want him to.”

“You… You what?” Lauren practically stuttered.

“Find us,” Hiro said, a small smile beginning to form on his lips. “I want him to find us.”

“That’s…” Lauren began but couldn’t finish.

It was crazy. It was insane. It was a death wish.

“I have an idea,” Hiro said, smiling bigger this time as he stopped what he was doing and patted the sheath on his back.

****

The hotel, what was left of it, appeared empty.

“I don’t see anyone,” Franco confirmed, still scanning the rubble as he spoke.

“This is where we first saw him,” D.L. said, turning a few times on the spot. “He was inside the Market and then…”

“There’s blood,” Audrey called out.

The three men turned to her, somewhat aghast.

“Not enough,” Audrey quickly continued. “Not nearly enough if he’d… Someone got hurt.”

“Let’s check the Market,” Peter said. “We’ll look there and the Hall. They might have gone back to regroup.”

“Maybe we should split up,” D.L. suggested.

“No,” Peter said quickly. “We’re staying together until we have no other choice. We’re already too spread out as it is.”

“So,” Audrey began, “where first?”

Peter looked across the street at the two buildings they were about to search, contemplating their next move.

“Franco,” he finally said, “can you see anything from here?”

“Too dark,” the man returned. “It’s all shadows.”

Peter nodded, expecting as much. He couldn’t see anything either.

“We’ll check the Hall first,” Peter decided. “That’s the last place we were all together. It might be the first place they returned too.”

****

It was either absolutely insane or completely brilliant, Lauren still hadn’t decided.

But she went along with it.

When Hiro explained his idea, she agreed. He had to have known she would. Lauren owed her life to him; she’d do anything he asked, risk anything.

But really, at this point, was it even a risk?

Sylar wasn’t going to stop looking for them. Locking themselves in the schoolroom had been an act of desperation. At least this was a course of action.

She was still terrified, but Lauren would rather die fighting then cowering in a corner. She’d spent too much of her life doing just that. Things had changed for her. She could be brave. She had to be.

Still, she didn’t feel as confident about their odds as Hiro did, and she really hated leaving Ando behind.

They had done their best to secure him in the room, vowing to be back, and making certain he was as comfortable as they could make him. It wasn’t enough.

Hiro had tried to be optimistic when Lauren suggested the possibility that Sylar might come upon Ando first, had tried to assure her that Sylar would just pass him by. It was true, Ando didn’t have a power for Sylar to take, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t hurt him worse than he’d already done.

But what choice did they have? They couldn’t take him with them, not in his condition.

Now, walking the dark hallway alone, leaving Ando behind like a sign of things to come. They’d practically abandoned him to die. They’d left him alone on nothing but a cold floor.

She kept trying to tell herself that they really couldn’t do anything more for him, at least not right now, but it had been wrong.

It was an omen.

****

They’d cautiously made their way across the street and into Faneuil Hall without incident. So far they’d seen no one or thing in the area; it was only them.

Going floor by floor, checking thoroughly, they finally reached the top only to be disappointed, finding it empty.

“Let’s go,” Peter said, trying not to let his frustration show. “We’ll check the Market…”

“What if it’s empty, too?” asked Franco.

“We’ll,” Peter started as they made their way back down the stairs, “…we’ll decide then. Right now, we just need to go one step at a time. We can’t get to…”

Peter stopped abruptly clutching the handrail; they all did. The entire staircase lurched as if being shaken by some unseen force. It was all they could do to keep from falling down the remainder of the steps or over the railing.

Holding on as tight as he could, Peter just managed to get a look over the side to the ground floor, not at all surprised to see Sylar there staring back up at him.

Smiling.

“It’s going to collapse,” Audrey called out.

“Go back!” Peter yelled. “Go back up!”

For a moment no one could move. The staircase was shaking so violently it wasn’t possible. Finally, knowing that it wasn’t going to get any easier, Audrey turned carefully and began a slow ascent with Franco just behind her.

“Go with them,” Peter told D.L., “and I’ll be…”

“I can keep him busy,” D.L. offered.

“It’s too risky.”

“It’s the same risk for me as it is for you,” D.L. argued.

“But…”

“Peter,” D.L. said as the shaking continued, growing fiercer each passing second, “we don’t have time to argue this. I’m staying to help you.”

Just then the shaking stopped and Peter knew they had even less time; Sylar was on his way up.

‘Hide in the wall,’ Peter thought at D.L., hoping the tactic worked. He’d never been able to push a thought into someone else’s head before the way he knew Matt could, but he had to try.

D.L. looked momentarily surprised, but quickly did as Peter had said to do; stepping into the wall as if it was made of nothing more than air.

“Peter Petrelli,” Sylar called out, taunting him as he climbed slowly up the steps. “Still trying to save the world?”

Peter didn’t answer. Just stood silently, waiting for the attack to begin.

“Still trying to save your friends?”

He was closer now, but moving so slowly.

“Well?” Sylar asked, finally coming into view. “Are you?”

Peter stared, still waiting for the fight to begin.

“This seems familiar,” Sylar said, suddenly dropping the fake smile.

“Did they take you too?” Sylar asked after a long pause. “The last time. I didn’t remember at first, but then something... It was like waking up from a long nap.”

“I don’t know…”

“They’re setting us up,” Sylar interrupted, taking a bold step forward. “You realize that, don’t you? Both of us. All of us. They sent me after you, set me free, because they knew that was what it would take for you to reach your full potential.”

“You’re a part of this?”

“We’re all a part of this,” Sylar answered. “Whether we want to be or not.”

“So, what now?” Peter asked in disbelief. “Does Primatech swoop in and haul us both back to their labs?”

“No,” Sylar said, the smile returning to his face. “I don’t think so. You see, that may be what they want to happen, but it’s not what I want to happen. I want to see it first. See how that brain of yours works. And then they can try to bring me in, but I wouldn’t count on it. Their mistake. Again.”

No sooner than Sylar had finished speaking, he threw up his hands and the stairwell was filled with lightening.

Peter reacted just in time and without thinking put up a shield like one he’d seen Lauren make countless times before.

He wasn’t even sure how he’d done it, but obviously Sylar had been right; Peter had never felt more confident or certain of how to use his powers than he did at this moment.

The lightening bounced off the shield but not before shattering it, deflecting it back at Sylar who staggered backwards from the blow.

The advantage was short-lived.

He was back on his feet, rushing towards Peter who was surprised to find that his feet had left the ground. Problem was Peter wasn’t doing it.

Sylar had lifted him off the ground, telekinetically, before slamming him into the wall with enough force to fill Peter’s vision with stars.

He was choking him.

Peter couldn’t move, couldn’t think of a single way to break Sylar’s hold on him; all he could do was take in a few ragged breaths.

“I can’t promise this won’t hurt,” Sylar said, clearly enjoying himself.

“Me either.”

Sylar didn’t even have a chance to turn around to see who the voice belonged too. The next thing he knew someone had thrown an arm around his throat and then he was falling.

Falling straight through the floor.  



	21. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 25: Survival**

Audrey and Franco did exactly as they’d been told to do. After climbing the last of the steps up, they searched for the alternate exit that led down again.

“Shouldn’t we…” Audrey started to ask, now trailing Franco.

“No,” he interrupted. “Peter said to go to City Hall and…”

“Do you always do exactly what you’re told?” snapped Audrey in return.

“This from you?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means you were FBI,” Franco answered as the exited the building, both of them exhausted. “You’re whole life was about following orders.”

“How…”

“I’m not saying it’s a bad thing,” Franco continued, looking around him and lowering his voice. “I was in the navy before all of this happened. I know all about following orders. Giving them too.”

“That’s not what I was going to ask,” Audrey said, straightening up and fixing him with a curious expression. “I was going to ask how you knew I was in the FBI. I’ve never told you that.”

“You didn’t have to,” said Franco. “Petrelli did. He was on to you, that you were helping your old friends. He even had me follow you a few times.”

“What?” Audrey exclaimed.

Franco just shrugged as if to say, ‘following orders’.

“What else?”

“This way,” Franco said instead of answering her, heading off towards City Hall as they’d been instructed to do.

“What else?” Audrey repeated.

“I’m not proud of it,” Franco said, trying to defuse her anger and not succeeding. “Besides, now is not really the time for this.”

Audrey nodded reluctantly in agreement.

“There are a lot of things I’m not proud of,” he continued on in a near-whisper. “But we all have to do something to survive, right?”

“I guess,” she conceded, not unkindly, as they picked up their pace.

Audrey knew she was overreacting, but it was a shock. It was probably the stress of the situation she reasoned with herself. Her whole life was now nothing but stress excepting a few fleeting moments she’d either spent alone or with Matt.

She could understand Franco’s position at the time. He’d been sent by the colony to spy on the Order. Of course he had to follow orders. If he hadn’t, he’d have been killed. Audrey had worked for them as well.

It had been about survival.

It still was.

Audrey slowed down as the approached Government Center, but to her surprise Franco did not.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

“Getting a better look.”

Audrey nodded and watched intently as he crept forward, straining to see into the darkness.

“Well?” she whispered after a long pause. “Are they still there?”

Franco said nothing, but Audrey thought she heard the sound of a helicopter approaching; maybe even more than one.

“Franco? What’s going…”

Audrey stopped as he turned back towards her. There was something about the expression on his face she didn’t like. One that made her straighten up instantly, the hairs on the back of her neck prickling. It was a look she’d seen before; desperation.

“It’s done.”

“What are you talking about?” Audrey asked, taking a step towards him, unsure she’d heard correctly.

“I’m sorry, Audrey. I really am.”

“No,” she said, shaking her head in disbelief. After everything that had happened, this couldn’t be real.

“I really am just following orders,” he said sullenly.

That’s when she knew for certain.

“Whose orders?” Audrey snapped. “You’re working for them too? Why? How? I thought…”

“I was with the colony,” Franco explained, feeling confession was good for the soul. “I was. Jacobs sent me down to spy on Petrelli. I stayed after he left because I was still useful, but not long after Ms. Yi took over she found me out. She knew. She could just see…”

Even as dark as it was, Audrey could see Franco pale at the memory.

“She went through the whole staff,” Franco continued. “Weeding out the ones with gifts, the spies, the traitors. Finding our secrets and our weaknesses. I tried to fight it, but what could I do?”

“So you turned us all in to save yourself.”

“Not me,” Franco countered aggressively. “My life isn’t that important. But to save my daughter, I’d do anything.”

Audrey didn’t want to, but she understood.

“She’s three,” he continued. “Three years old and Yi has her. She’s keeping her hostage. I haven’t even seen her in… I had no choice.”

Audrey was too stunned to speak. She could only watch the man as he tried to hold himself together and wait and see what happened next.

“She knew you and Matt weren’t here,” he went on. “Knew you were being held by Primatech, that’s why I only came back six months ago. She also knew that Matt wouldn’t be able to use his powers; I’d be safe. He wouldn’t be able to read my thoughts, so he wouldn’t know I was the one betraying you all.”

“What about Maggie?”

“Maggie must work for Primatech or for no one,” Franco shrugged. “I don’t know. Yi has her own spies, is branching out; getting ready to make a move and she needed a few people for that. I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?” asked Audrey, her voice starting to break. Sorry was such an inadequate word for this mess. It could never cover it.

“Whatever they did to Matt at Primatech,” Franco answered, “she wanted to see for herself. She’s got him already. I watched her setting her trap when we were here before, earlier tonight. I was hoping Peter would look for himself so I could just confess, tell the truth and end this, but he didn’t. He trusted me.”

Audrey only shook her head in disbelief.

“All of this has been one, big, trap. Primatech let you both go because they are testing something, I was never told what exactly, but it involved Matt. Primatech is coming; it’s not just the Order here tonight. They’re coming to collect specific people and the rest, the rest they just want dead. They want the problem to go away.”

“So she’s not working with them anymore?” Audrey asked.

“Not really. She’s pretending to, but it’s an act. She’s good at that.”

“Who are they after?” Audrey continued to question as if the two of them were having a perfectly normal conversations. It all was so surreal. “Do you know? Why just certain people?”

“No, I don’t know. They wouldn’t tell me. Yi only said who she wanted caught and who she wanted killed.”

“And?”

“I’m sorry, Audrey,” Franco said, drawing his gun. “You weren’t on the capture list.”

****

D.L. knew when he had to let go, had planned the whole thing out in his head, so when the time came he could just do it.

He was surprised it worked so well.

After dropping down, D.L. pushed himself away from Sylar, releasing the hold he had around the other man’s neck, leaving him embedded midway through the second flight of stairs. D.L. continued to let himself fall until he landed, solidly, on the first floor.

It didn’t hold him long.

Sylar, after a momentary struggle, busted free from the concrete steps with enough force to collapse the rest of the staircase. Peter had just enough of his wits about him to conger up Nathan’s ability to mind, remaining in place and in the air as it happened, but as he headed towards the ground, he was struck by the falling debris and knocked unconscious.

D.L. wasn’t as lucky.

Sylar lunged for him in a rage; furious that, once again, someone had gotten between him and his prey.

He had him around the throat, pushing him backwards with such force that, unknowingly, D.L. phased them both straight through the wall and into the courtyard between Quincy Market and Faneuil Hall, skidding several yards across the ground before finally coming to a rest.

D.L. was losing control.

He couldn’t think straight enough to phase only himself, and he couldn’t throw Sylar off of him either. That’s when he realized that the other man was using more than just his brawn; he was using his powers to hold him in place.

There was nothing D.L. could do.

Sylar, sensing his advantage, stood up and stared down at him with a creepy smile plastered firmly on his face.

“Well now, it will be fun to try that –“

Sylar was stopped as something hard hit him in the face before exploding into nothing. The force of it was enough to knock him sideways for a few steps and irritate him, but nothing more.

“You again,” he sneered, turning to face the young dark-haired woman that absolutely refused to die.

From inside the Market, Lauren had heard the commotion and had come out to investigate. She had only meant to take a quick look before going to alert Hiro, but after seeing Sylar hovering over D.L., she knew she didn’t have time. She had to act.

Sylar threw lightening in her direction while still concentrating on keeping D.L. pinned to the ground. It took an effort, but this time he was prepared for it. The group he had encountered earlier, north of here, hadn’t put up any kind of fight at all. It had been a slaughter. Way too easy. Of course most of them hadn’t been gifted. It had almost been a wasted trip. But this, this was a challenge.

This could be fun.

Lauren put up her strongest shield which deflected the blow without a problem and instead of releasing it, held it in place before her knowing it wasn’t over.

Sylar strode towards her with a frightening certainty and confidence that she completely lacked. Putting up his hands, she felt it. He was pushing at her shield; pushing at her essentially. For a moment she was able to hold her own, but it was a brief moment. He was too strong for her.

Lauren felt herself being pushed, felt her feet start to scrape the ground, propelling her backwards, even as she tried to keep it from happening.

She just wasn’t strong enough.

The sound of her shoes dragging on the ground as she struggled for any type of traction was the only thing she could hear; that and her heartbeat.

Sylar grinned as she began to panic, backed into the wall with only the shield to protect her.

But he was too much for her.

Panting and exhausted, she had to drop it. Lauren dropped her last defense and slid to the ground only to feel her body lift up into the air. There was nothing more she could do to stop it from happening.

And then there was lightening.

Peter had made his way out of the building and used Sylar’s own power against him.

Sylar took the hit, falling to the ground and simultaneously releasing Lauren and D.L. as he did so.

But he wasn’t down long.

Sylar turned to face Peter.

“Go,” Peter said quietly as D.L. stood up to be at his side.

D.L. started to object, but seeing the intensity in Peter’s eyes, decided against it. There was no point in arguing now. Peter was obviously determined to do this his way.

“Yes,” Sylar agreed. “Run along now. Take the girl, too. I’ll see you both later.”

Lauren, standing almost directly behind Sylar, couldn’t move. She was shaking from exhaustion and fright, not believing she was still alive after all this or that Sylar would just let her walk away.

D.L. began to walk towards her, to help her out, but before he even got close she was inexplicably flung to the side.

Sylar smiled.

Lauren, dazed, pulled herself to her feet. She wasn’t hurt, only stunned. Once more, D.L. headed purposely towards her, wanting to get the both of them out of the way as quick as possible, but that wasn’t going to happen.

Sylar, again, pushed her to the side. This time, however, there was much more force behind it. He was toying with her, using her to provoke Peter further, and there was nothing she could do to stop it.

But Peter could.

Lauren felt her whole body stop in mid air and lower gently to the ground, but it wasn’t over yet.

D.L. watched in morbid fascination, unable to help in the slightest.

Angered that his game had ended, Sylar made another push at Lauren, but Peter was holding her still. The combined effect was that she was being squeezed. Pressed on one side to move and the other to stay, Lauren began to struggle just to breath.

“Peter!” D.L. yelled, seeing what was happening. “Stop it! She can’t get any air!”

But he wasn’t listening.

Peter and Sylar had locked eyes, oblivious to what their battle of wills was actually doing.

“Peter!” D.L. yelled once more, but it was no good.

No one was going to save her, so Lauren had to do it herself.

Either by instinct, or sheer will to survive, Lauren drew in one more gasping breath before pushing out with everything she had, omitting a force field that didn’t emerge from her hands but from her entire body. It shot out in all directions, a blinding blue with incredible speed leaving Lauren to fall, less than gracefully, to the ground.

There hadn’t been any warning and only D.L. saw it as it happen. He steadied himself, prepared to phase through whatever came his way, but it didn’t work. Whatever she had used to break free, whatever field it was, he couldn’t pass through it the way he had so many things before. It hit him head on, stinging and unbreakable, knocking him to the ground in the blink of an eye.

It spread out a good hundred yards, flattening everything it touched including Sylar and Peter, in a perfect circle with Lauren at the epicenter.

No one was really hurt, only stunned and knocked breathless, but they could have been. Lauren felt it. If she hadn’t held back at the very end, she could have really done some damage.

“Lauren!”

Turning awkwardly toward the sound of the voice, Lauren saw Hiro had emerged from the Market, undoubtedly drawn as she had been by the sound of the commotion.

“What happened?”

She didn’t answer. Just shook her head dumbly, still in a daze before realizing that Hiro had stopped time again all around them.

“He’s there,” Lauren called out in excitement, rushing suddenly at Hiro and pulling him towards the others. “You did it. You stopped him now… Now just…”

Lauren knew what came next and so did Hiro, but even still she couldn’t bring herself to say ‘kill him.’ Not out loud.

The plan had worked, sort of. Lauren had distracted Sylar, she’d been a perfect decoy, and Hiro had frozen him in place.

Now all that was left to do was end it.

Hiro drew his sword and paused as he stood before the man, the monster.

This wasn’t honorable, he knew that. Hiro would be killing a man without a chance to defend himself. It wasn’t lost on him, however, that that was exactly how Sylar did it. He paralyzed his victims and then moved in for the kill.

Maybe that made this fair. Sylar would be getting exactly what he gave. Dying the way he lived.

Or maybe that made Hiro as much of a murderer as Sylar was.

Sighing, Hiro pulled his sword level at the man’s heart and tried not to think about it anymore.

This had to be done.

Sylar had to be stopped.

Hiro glanced once more at Lauren who looked as nervous and sick as he felt, before taking a deep breath ramming the sword straight into Sylar’s chest.

Except the sword didn’t move.

“This is my fight.”

Turning to the sound of the voice, Hiro almost didn’t believe it. There was Peter unfrozen with one hand on the hilt of the sword and a menacing gleam in his eyes.

“Stay out of it,” he continued as he grabbed him by the arm and threw him to Lauren’s feet.

“Peter,” Hiro said, getting quickly to his feet, “you’re not thinking clearly. You’re not yourself. Let me just…”

“I said no!” shouted Peter, this time flinging both of them back further than before. “He’s mine to fight and mine to kill. Leave.”

Hiro and Lauren watched in disbelief as time started again around them.

“Did you…” Lauren started to ask, but knew the answer even before Hiro had begun to shake his head ‘no’.

D.L., clearly confused by the abrupt change, paused momentarily before spotting them both and running to them.

“What’s going on?” he asked, giving them both a hand up.

“We’ve got a problem,” answered Hiro. “A big problem. Unless we want Boston to end up like New York, we’ve got to stop this. Now. Right now. Peter’s not himself. He’s not only taking on Sylar’s powers, but his personality too.”

“What can we do?” D.L. asked, turning to watch the terrifying scene unfolding in the courtyard.

Hiro only shook his head at a complete loss.

The real battle had begun.  



	22. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 26: Legacy**

Jenny personally escorted Matt up and out of the basement. The guards who had taken Nathan and Claire had waited for them at the entrance with their charges. Claire, relieved to see Matt was alright, desperately tried to make eye contact with him but to no avail.

“We just got word Ms. Yi,” a new man said as he ran up from the street. “The colony has been located. They put up a bit of a fight but, as expected, turned over Suresh. We have him. A copter just took off to pick him up and should be back shortly.”

“Excellent,” she returned with a smile, looking at each of the three captives in turn.

“Spencer wanted to know what you wanted done with the rest of them now that we’ve succeeded.”

“The rest?” Jenny questioned, her demeanor instantly changing.

“Yes, ma’am,” the man answered. “The rest of the colony. He wanted to know what…”

“He should do what he was told to do,” Jenny interrupted coldly. “If they aren’t on the pick up list, kill them. Kill them all.”

“What?” Claire shouted.

“Why?” Matt asked loudly at the same time.

“You can’t do that,” Claire continued.

Jenny turned to her and eyed her shrewdly. Matt and Nathan both knew instantly it had been the wrong thing to say.

“Why not?” she asked, encroaching on the younger woman’s personal space.

“Because…” Claire started to say, but didn’t know how to finish.

Jenny could do it and they both knew that. There was nothing to stop her from doing it. Nothing at all.

“Because you won’t gain anything from it,” Matt finished. “What’s it to you if they live or die. They can’t hurt you. They can’t stop you.”

“That’s true,” Jenny said, still staring down at Claire.

There was a heavy pause. Matt knew Jenny well enough, knew she was thinking it over and any more advice or pleas would just be counter to their cause.

“What about you?” she asked, turning inexplicably to Nathan. “I didn’t hear you begging for your friends. Or, is that just it. They aren’t your friends so you don’t care. What should I do, Mr. Petrelli? What would you do?”

“Leave them,” he said smoothly. “I never killed unless I had to.”

Matt had to fight down the urge to roll his eyes, opting instead to look at his feet. Sure, as far as he knew Nathan hadn’t purposely killed anyone; only tried. Of course the one he had tried to kill was Matt.

“The people here are already terrified of you,” Nathan continued. “Leave them alive and your legacy continues to…”

Her smile did away the last of his words.

“I’m not like you,” she said before turning back to the man who had brought her the news. “I don’t care about my legacy. I don’t care if people fear me, worship me, or want to be me. I only care about them wanting to stop me. I used to think you were too strict. Too harsh. That the laws and the prison terms were all too over-the-top. I was wrong. You weren’t too harsh, you were too soft. I’m not like you,” she repeated, glaring at him now. “I’ve learned from your mistakes. No one lives that doesn’t have to so that no one will be left to challenge me.”

For a moment there was a deathly silence.

“Kill them all.”

“Yes, ma’am,” the man said, leaving quickly with his orders.

Claire hung her head, at a complete loss.

This couldn’t be happening.

Jenny just smiled, looking at Matt as if daring him to say something.

“We’ll wait for Suresh,” she began, addressing the other guards. “Take them all together.”

“Yes, Ms. Yi.”

“While we wait,” continued Jenny, “there’s something I’ve been curious about. Maybe Claire can help me with it.”

Claire turned away slightly, indicating she had no desire to help Jenny in the slightest.

“I’ve seen what you can do for yourself,” Jenny said, ignoring her attitude, “but I’ve never seen what you can do for others. Not first hand.”

Claire shook her head slightly in disbelief, but now also somewhat afraid. The tension was getting thick.

“So how does it work, Claire?” Jenny continued. “I know you can fix yourself, but how does it work with others? Do you have to say a little prayer and chant? Lay hands on them? How? It really fascinates me.”

“I’m not telling you anything,” Claire muttered under her breath.

“Fine,” Jenny said, quickly taking out her gun. “How about you give me a demonstration then?”

Claire watched as Jenny pointed the gun at Matt’s head with a wicked smile.

Nathan shifted uneasily, shutting his eyes briefly to the scene before him.

“Well?” prompted Jenny.

Claire caught Matt with a long and serious look before shaking her head.

“No.”

“No?” Jenny asked incredulously.

Even Nathan gaped at her.

“You’re not going to shoot him,” Claire said firmly.

“And why don’t you think…”

“Because I won’t bring him back,” the younger woman interrupted loudly.

Jenny lowered the gun and positively stared.

“I’ll… I’ll let him die,” Claire continued.

“No you won’t,” Jenny quickly dismissed. “You’re just like him. He couldn’t let you go and you…”

“I will,” Claire interrupted, louder with just a slight amount of anger behind her voice. “I will because whatever you have planned, death would be better. It would have to be.”

“I don’t believe you,” Jenny said, raising the gun again.

“Fine,” Claire answered. “Do it and find out.”

“Claire,” Nathan said, hardly aware he was speaking. Shocked Parkman wasn’t saying anything with the two of them standing there discussing his death; bartering for his life.

Still eyeing Claire, waiting for her to flinch, Jenny cocked the gun.

And then a change washed briefly across Jenny’s face and she lowered the gun again.

“You need him,” Claire said after a heavy pause.

“Don’t you?”

“I do,” Claire said, choosing to look at Matt again as the tears began to well up in her eyes. “But I’m not going to heal him so that you can keep doing this. I won’t bring him back for that. I just won’t.”

“But that’s what he did,” Jenny returned. “He brought you back to this.”

“No,” said Claire with a shake of her head. “You did. You’re the one with the power, right?”

For once Jenny didn’t seem to know how to respond.

“Ma’am,” the guard from earlier said quietly, having just returned. “The copter with Suresh just landed and, um, there’s something else.”

“What else could there be?” Jenny barked, looking relieved to have something else to tend to at the moment.

The guard cast suspicious looks at the three captives before whispering, “Our man is back.”

Jenny’s eyes lit up at the news.

“And?”

“He says it’s done.”

“I want to speak with him,” Jenny ordered. “Right now. Bring him up.”

The guard nodded and was off again.

“Time for you to prove your worth,” Jenny said as she took what looked like a phone off her belt and tapped in a few numbers. “I want you to make sure he’s telling me the truth.”

Matt could barely believe it, even of Jenny. Is that what she wanted him for? As a lie detector? Surely she had other ways of telling for herself.

“Why should I…”

“Oh,” Jenny cut him off quickly, “you’ll want to hear this. You’ll want to know. I’m doing you a favor, really.”

As Jenny holstered the device Matt heard a small click and instantly felt that his powers had returned.

“Take the other two down to the helicopter and wait for us,” Jenny ordered once more. “We’ll only be a few minutes.”

Neither Claire nor Nathan fought as they were led off, but each did give Matt one last parting glance.

“Are you going to tell me what I’m supposed to be listening for?” Matt asked sarcastically as they waited, alone again.

“I’d rather it was a surprise.”

“Right through there,” Matt heard the guard he was familiar with say before the door opened again and to his amazement Jon Franco walked in.

Franco looked as stunned to see Matt as Matt was to see him.

_‘Has she already told him?’_

“Update,” demanded Jenny, wasting no time despite her clear enjoyment of the situation.

“Sylar is in the vicinity,” Franco began, fixing his eyes on Jenny and just on Jenny. “We’d run into him earlier tonight and again not long ago. He and Petrelli are engaged in battle as we speak.”

“And your assignment?”

_‘Don’t make me say it.’_

“I, um, I couldn’t…” Franco stammered. “Sanders left with her son, heading towards the last known location the colony would be.”

“Good. He found her. I’ll tell the men to keep an eye out for them. Continue.”

“It’s unknown where Nakamura and his associates are,” Franco said, taking a deep breath. “From what I understand one was fatally injured earlier, although that has not been confirmed.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Jenny dismissed with a wave of her hand. “Primatech will blow the whole city apart as soon as we’re gone. What about the rest?”

“Hawkins was attempting to help Petrelli and… um…”

_‘Oh, God, how do I say it? She’s going to make me tell him myself.’_

“Tell me what?” Matt asked quickly, growing alarmed and knowing there was only one name left.

_‘Matt, I’m so sorry. I had no choice. Please believe that.’_

“Tell him,” Jenny said with a laugh.

“What happened to Audrey?” Matt yelled as he rushed the man. “What happened to her?”

Franco’s entire face had fallen into a display of remorse.

“I didn’t want…”

“What did you do?” Matt continued to yell.

_‘I had no choice. It was either her or…’_

In an instant the voice was gone. Matt turned briefly just in time to see Jenny put the device away, having obviously turned off his power once more.

“What happened?” Matt repeated, calmer now but not by much. “Where is she? Where?”

But Franco couldn’t answer; looked completely incapable of it now.

“Come on,” Jenny said, pulling Matt by the arm. “Time to go.”

“I’m not going until I know… until I see her. I want to see Audrey. If you have her…”

“I said it’s time to go,” Jenny repeated, pulling harder this time.

Matt shook her off, still glaring at Franco.

“I know Little Miss Texas says she’ll let you die, but there are other things I can do to you that aren’t lethal. That will hurt just as much. Maybe more. So, unless you want me to start testing them on you right now, you’d better start moving.”

“I want to know what happened,” Matt said through gritted teeth.

“I warned you,” Jenny said, pulling what had to be a remote to his inhibitor from her belt and once more keying in a code.

Matt felt a searing pain shoot from his neck straight down his back; pain so intense it not only brought white spots before his eyes but it also took him to his knees.

“Get up!” Jenny spat.

With some effort, Matt did. Wiping away the tears that had inadvertently come to his eyes and then the blood from his mouth where he’d bit his tongue.

“This thing goes up to ten,” she continued in the same venomous tone. “That was a three. Now unless you want more, I suggest you start moving.”  



	23. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 27: Wreck**

“It’s not much further,” Niki said in a low whisper. “It can’t be.”

Micah didn’t answer knowing she wasn’t really talking to him; she just needed to be talking. He knew his mom deeply regretted leaving the others behind, and he also knew she’d done it for him.

He wasn’t sure how to feel about that.

“I want you to stay with the group,” Niki continued. “I’m going to talk to Jacobs and Marissa; tell them what’s happened.”

“Mom,” Micah said softly, “you can’t do that.”

“I’m sure he’ll come back with me,” Niki continued, paying him no mind. “I know he will. Jacobs will want to help out Peter and --”

“Mom,” Micah said urgently. “You can’t.”

“Micah,” Niki said, finally stopping and turning to him, “I have to. I have to get as many people as I can to help --”

“Jacobs is dead,” he blurted out.

“What?”

“Maggie killed him,” continued Micah, “back at City Hall. He’s dead. He can’t help us anymore.”

Niki stood frozen on the spot as rage began to fill her eyes.

“Maggie? Maggie killed him?”

“Yes,” affirmed Micah. “She’s dead too.”

“How?”

“Jenny Yi.”

Micah watched as the anger slowly leaked from his mother’s eyes, and they filled instead with acceptance; the storm momentarily passed.

“Why didn’t you tell me before?” she asked as she began her steady march forward again.

“I don’t know. Didn’t think of it. Not with so much else happening.”

He saw her nod her head, but she didn’t comment further. He knew she thought that should have been the first thing out of his mouth, but how could it have been? When Micah had finally met up with his mom Sylar had been there.

“Anything else I should know?” asked Niki, her back still to him.

“No.”

“Good,” she returned. “Here’s what we’ll do. When we meet up with the others…”

Niki trailed off having heard a strange noise not to far off.

“Is that…” Micah started to ask, but was quickly silenced by the look his mother threw him.

Niki, straining to listen, could make out a harsh ‘whoosh-whoosh’ noise not to far from them.

“Helicopters,” she said after a lengthy pause.

“They might only be sweeping the area,” suggested Micah.

“They might,” Niki agreed as she held up her hand for further silence.

They were about two blocks from where they needed to be. If these were Order helicopters, they might have discovered where the colony was headed. This might be trouble. If they were Primatech, it might be worse.

“Lets get closer,” Niki finally said, “but not too close.”

Micah nodded and they walked another half a block, keeping as much in the shadows as possible, to the steadily increasing noise of not one but three helicopters overhead.

But it wasn’t just the helicopters they could hear now.

Mixed in with the noise of the rotor engines was the unmistakable sound of people screaming, and gunfire.

Micah and Niki remained glued in place, their backs firmly pressed against the side of the nearest building, as they tried in vain to determine exactly what was happening without being able to see it firsthand.

“What are we going to do?” Micah asked as loudly as he dared.

Niki shook her head, not knowing what to tell him.

The colony sounded as if they were being slaughtered, they couldn’t walk into that.

“We’ll have to go back,” she finally said. “Go back and -- ”

One of the helicopters suddenly appeared over the top of the building they were hiding beside, it’s light sweeping along the alleyway looking for anyone who might have gotten away.

“Run!” Niki yelled to Micah as the spotlight crept closer and closer to where they stood. “Run, Micah!”

He didn’t hesitate. Micah never did when it came to doing what his mother told him to do. She said run and he knew that that was exactly what needed to be done to survive.

Micah was halfway down the street when he realized Niki wasn’t with him.

Stopping, turning to see what was keeping her, he felt his insides clench up and grow cold.

She hadn’t moved.

Niki was just standing there, alone in the spotlight, staring up at the helicopter as if daring them to make a move.

Micah only managed three steps back towards her before the gunner in the copter opened fire on her.

She never had a chance.

Falling backwards against the wall, she slid down to the ground, and Micah knew instantly she was gone.

It had all happened so fast, yet somehow that moment felt as if it had dragged on for hours.

“No!” he screamed, racing back to her regardless of his own safety.

The helicopter’s spotlight swung towards Micah, stopping him in place.

Micah stared up in loathing at the machine hovering there; hating it and it’s occupants more than he’d ever hated anything before in his life.

He watched as the gunner, the same man who had just killed his mother, took aim at him. But instead of firing, something odd happened.

A loud ‘pop’ sounded, startling the crew as the spotlight they’d been using suddenly burst into flame before quickly burning out. The person manning it was too close not to be hurt. Their sleeve caught fire almost instantly, and in a mad move, the man swung his arm wildly into the air, losing balance and falling out and onto the street below.

Micah could almost sense the panic, but he did not even blink. He hadn’t even watched the unfortunate man’s decent, just continued to stare up at the remaining crew members.

The gunner, not wanting to wait and see what would happen next, took aim at man on the ground. Despite the lack of light, Micah was still visible, or visible enough. The quicker he was dead, the sooner they could leave; hopefully without any more causalities among their group.

He pulled the trigger and nothing happened.

These new guns were wired into the system. They had enhanced features that could be used against those with abnormalities. They’d been equipped with a special computer programs, targeting and tracking microchips, just before they’d left for this mission.

Right now they were useless.

“Get us out of here!” the gunner yelled to the pilot.

He had to yell, the radios were dead.

Whether or not the pilot had heard him, it was what he’d been planning to do from the moment the spotlight went dead.

He’d seen the look on the man’s face below.

As soon as the pilot pulled up on the controls, he felt the machine shudder. Immediately after that the main rotor blade simply stopped spinning and the entire helicopter was dead in the air.

Almost as if someone had turned it off.

Micah watched as the once flying machine dropped out of the sky and onto the street before him. He felt the impact, but didn’t move away; he was done running.

Instead, Micah took out the gun Lauren had given him earlier in the night and waited to see if anyone would emerge from the wreck.

****

The silence was resolute.

It was like being in the eye of a storm.

Peter and Sylar stood there, only a few feet from one another, just staring; each waiting for the other to react.

Hiro took a small step forward in order to put an end to it, but D.L. quickly put a hand on his chest, holding him back with a slow shake of his head.

Neither man moved, or blinked, or hardly seemed to breathe until…

With a clap of thunder, it began.

Sylar made the first move, rushing Peter, who was entirely too quick for him, leaping backwards and out of his grasp with surprising ease.

The wind picked up dramatically, whipping through the courtyard and nearly knocking the three bystanders off their feet.

After that first initial burst, the two men themselves seemed barely to move, as if it was an internal struggle. And mostly, it was. It was clear, even from a distance that Sylar was trying to get some type of mental grasp on Peter, but with no success.

It seemed as if the very reason Sylar coveted Peter’s power was also the reason he couldn’t, wouldn’t be able to obtain it.

Whatever he tried, Peter blocked. Whatever power he used, Peter used as well.

Neither of them would be capable of getting the upper hand, D.L. reasoned to himself, since they both possessed virtually the same skill set. Peter might have a slight advantage, having met and copied powers Sylar had not been able to consume, but it was just slight.

Try as he might it appeared that Peter was equally unable to get any kind of hold of Sylar; that Sylar was just s quick at reacting as Peter was.

It would have to eventually end a stalemate; it had to.

A huge bolt of lightning ripped across the sky above them, jarring D.L. from his thoughts.

“We can’t stay here,” D.L. said, having to shout in order to get his voice heard above the approaching storm.

“We can’t leave Peter either,” Hiro countered.

D.L. shook his head again as he looked back at the two men still fighting their odd fight. Sylar, growing impatient, hurled a dumpster at Peter who had easily deflected it back at him, all while the two of them hovered about ten feet off the ground; Sylar buoyed by the wind, Peter by Nathan’s ability.

Every instinct D.L. had told him to run. That this situation was too far out of control to be contained, and if they stayed they’d be killed.

“Peter wouldn’t abandon us,” urged Hiro, seeming to sense D.L. internal turmoil.

“Peter’s not himself,” Lauren said so softly that neither of the men had even heard her speak.

“What can we do?” D.L. asked, clearly at a loss.

But Hiro didn’t seem to know the answer to that.

A loud series of thuds called their attention back to the disaster at hand. Bricks had begun to rain down upon the courtyard as both Sylar and Peter were now using pieces of the surrounding buildings to try and one-up one another. Hoping to catch the other off guard and gain the advantage.

“They’ll wreck the place,” Lauren said, louder this time. “They’ll wreck the city.”

No one answered.

“The building!” she yelled, suddenly frantic. “Ando’s still inside. We’ve got to get him out of there or they’ll bring it down on him!”

“Where is he?” D.L. asked, reluctantly turning from the fight before him and towards Lauren instead. “I can go and get him, but I need to know exactly --”

D.L. stopped mid-sentence as he heard the approach of something heading their way, ripping through the wind and noise. Without a second to spare he took Lauren and Hiro each by a shoulder, allowing the tree Sylar had uprooted and fired off in their direction to phase straight through them.

“ – where he is,” D.L. finished, returning to Lauren as if nothing out of the ordinary had just occurred.

“The school room,” she quickly provided, “in the back. I can go with you…”

“No,” he cut in quick. “Stay here with Hiro. Keep an eye on these two. I won’t be long.”

“What if it gets out of control?” Hiro asked quite seriously, stopping D.L. and holding him by the forearm to emphasize his point.

“I think we’ve passed that point,” Lauren added.

“Do what you have to do,” D.L. said with a short nod. “Whatever you have to do.”

Hiro nodded as well, understanding what he meant even if he didn’t like what it implied.

Lauren and Hiro watched as D.L. jogged off and out of sight around the end of the building. Their attention was soon called back to the fight before them that had turned much more physical.

A bit in awe, Lauren watched as Peter used her power to create a field in front of him that was not only staying better than hers ever had, but actually seemed to repel anything Sylar threw his way.

But he’d apparently grown complacent.

Peter seemed to think that Sylar couldn’t reach him now. And while it was true that the field deflected objects, it could not deflect abilities.

Sylar did as he’d done to Lauren and pushed the field telekinetically with such force that it shattered and sent Peter flying backwards into the building behind him.

Hiro and Lauren both gasped as Peter hit the wall hard, running forward instinctively to get a better look and perhaps help if they could.

To their surprise, Peter was smiling.

He looked a bit dazed, the hit having obviously rattled him, but he was definitely happy about what had just transpired.

It had been the move he’d been waiting for.

Peter, until then, hadn’t been able to get a good enough grasp on how Sylar was able to move things with extreme force telekinetically; not people at least.

The field had been a bluff.

He’d known that Sylar would bust through it and give him the push he needed, the show of force Peter needed to witness first hand to not only give him the understanding of how it was done but the best way to do it himself.

Sylar, for his part, didn’t seem to realize what was happening until it was too late.

From the ground it looked as if Sylar had been physically punched in the stomach. The man, doubled at the middle, emitted a loud huff of air and flew back at a speed that didn’t quite seem real, crashing straight into the Market.

But unlike Peter, Sylar didn’t just hit the wall, he broke through it.

Hiro started to call out to Peter, tried to catch his attention, but it was no use.

Not content with merely hurting Sylar at this point, Peter flew after him intent on finishing this the only way he knew how.

Before either Hiro or Lauren could react, they heard a low rumble and watched, horrorstruck, as the Market began to shake violently and collapse upon itself.

“No!” Lauren yelled, starting forward but getting nowhere as Hiro quickly caught hold of her.

“Lauren, stop!”

“No! He’s inside! Ando and D.L., we’ve got to…”

“Lauren, we’ve got to go!”

Lauren shook her head hard, not believing what Hiro had just said; trying desperately to pull free from him as he began to drag her away from the building.

“We can still help them,” she tried, still unable to get free.

“No, we can’t. Not now. It’s not safe!”

“What? I can’t… Why are you…”

“Look!” he yelled, pointed up into the sky.

Peter and Sylar’s fight hadn’t only been watched by Hiro and Lauren, others had seen as well.

A harsh light swept over the courtyard. It was only when it stopped on them that Lauren stopped struggling and realized exactly what Hiro had been talking about.

The helicopter swung back, much quieter than the one they’d ran into earlier that night, and seemed as if it was staring them down.

Without really thinking, Lauren went to create a field between them and the enemy, but nothing happened.

“What’s –“

Hiro didn’t let her finish.

Still having hold of her arm, he yanked her back and began to run just as the first shots were fired.

“Faster!” he yelled at her, as they headed away from the Market.

Lauren didn’t argue this time, she only tried to keep up.  



	24. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 28: Concentrate**

He knew it was shock. Mohinder had seen it often enough to recognize it in himself, but the realization did no good whatsoever. He couldn’t shake it.

Mohinder sat exactly where they’d placed him, barely blinking, hardly moving, and stared out the window in disbelief.

It had all happened so fast.

They’d been in the tunnels. They’d come out of the tunnels. They’d gone into the building and then…

The Order had been waiting for them.

Marissa had tried to talk him out of it, had tried to tell him that they would fight for him, but Mohinder knew it was pointless. They only wanted him, and so he’d go.

Mohinder had agreed to come out, to surrender, and that was to be that.

Stupid mistake.

Maybe that’s why Marissa had been so adamant. Maybe she knew. She probably had, better than Mohinder.

He should have known better.

No sooner than they had him by the arm, they’d opened fire.

The colony didn’t stand a chance.

The screams. The explosions. People running with nowhere to go.

Mohinder was never going to forget it; he was going to have nightmares about it for the rest of his life. His biggest mistake. His stupidest…

He should have known better by now than to believe in the humanity of others.

And now he sat and waited in a helicopter outside of City Hall; hands bound as he stared out the window without seeing a thing, until finally a distant movement brought him back to himself.

There were people approaching.

Finally.

Mohinder tried not to get his hopes up too high, but he had a feeling he already knew who he was waiting for and he wasn’t disappointed.

Once the group had closed the distance by half, Mohinder sighed in relief to see Claire and Nathan. He knew he shouldn’t be happy to see them in this situation, but he couldn’t help himself.

At least they were alive.

Mohinder watched, eager for more information, as the guards slid Nathan in beside him and Claire to the spot directly in front and facing him.

Nathan was the only one of the two that made any kind of eye contact, any sign of recognition at all to the other man. And even that was meager. Nathan simply smiled briefly, tightly, and gave Mohinder a nod before turning his eyes back on City Hall; staring in the same fashion as Claire had been since they joined him.

Mohinder looked as well, unaware of exactly what he was looking for until he suddenly remembered.

“Matt and Micah,” he uttered just under his breath. “Where are they? Are they…”

“There he is,” Nathan interjected, motioning with his head as his hands were also bound. “I told you he’d be fine, Claire. See. Nothing to worry about.”

Claire didn’t seem to feel the same. She still continued to fidget in her seat looking tense and uneasy.

“But Micah,” Mohinder repeated. “I thought…”

“It was a trick,” Claire said softly, her eyes still following Matt’s progress towards them. “He was never… he wasn’t there. It was her. She’d…”

Mohinder looked again and didn’t have to ask any more questions. He knew who Claire meant by ‘her’. He remembered ‘her’ well.

Jenny Yi.

Mohinder hadn’t noticed before, had only been looking at his friend, but there she was. Larger than life and leading Matt by the arm.

“Dear God,” Mohinder whispered, shaking his head and clasping his hands together hard. “I’m not ready for this. Not again.”

“I’d suggest you try to be,” Nathan said, not with sarcasm but with honest feeling.

“Quiet,” Claire said just as they’d arrived.

“Dr. Suresh,” Jenny said, stepping back as one of the guards helped Matt into the empty spot to Claire’s right. “So nice of you to join us. We’ve met before, but of course you might not recognize me.”

“I recognize you,” Mohinder returned, having gained some strength from Nathan’s bracing words. “Last time I saw you, you were crying in the corner.”

“Things change,” Jenny said, the smile slipping momentarily from her lips. “Things always change. In fact, they already have. Last time we were all gathered like this, wasn’t someone else with us? I think… yes, there was someone else. Isn’t that right, Matt?”

Until that moment Matt had sat, much like Mohinder before him, nearly motionless in the helicopter; completely overcome by a combination of grief, and shock, and pain.

But as soon as she’d done it, as soon as Jenny had alluded to Audrey, he snapped his head around in her direction with an unrecognizable look of hate etched in every feature.

Jenny only issued a short, crisp laugh and smiled brighter than before.

“Too bad she can’t be here, isn’t it?” she continued to taunt. “She’s going to miss all of the fun.”

Before he realized he was doing it, Matt moved to attack her. He’d never hated, truly hated someone like this before, and he simply couldn’t stop himself from doing it, but Jenny could.

Matt hadn’t even gotten up out of his seat before a searing pain ripped down his back, shocking him so harsh and abruptly that he cried out involuntarily.

“I warned you, Matt,” Jenny said, obviously delighted by the agony she was causing. “I showed you what it can do. That was only a four; not even halfway there yet. Don’t keep testing me.”

The pain subsiding Matt fell back into place, sweating heavily and looking nauseous.

No one spoke. No one dared.

Jenny, seeming to sense that they were all sufficiently cowed, nodded and the guard slid the door shut and locked them in.

“Are you alright?” Claire whispered urgently, leaning low and speaking directly into Matt’s ear.

“What was that all about?” Nathan asked with as much fervor as Claire had. “Parkman, what’s happened?”

The three of them watched him intently as he seemed to pull himself together; to snap whatever it was that had hold of him.

“Franco,” Matt finally said, his voice hoarse; his head still in his hands and his eyes still looking down.

“Franco?” Nathan repeated, not understanding. “What? I don’t… Did she get him too?”

Matt laughed, but there was no humor in it.

“Yeah,” he answered after a pause. “She did. She got him alright.”

“No,” Claire said in an awful hush.

“What?” Mohinder asked. “What’s happened? What about Franco?”

“It wouldn’t be the first time,” Nathan said with a bit of hostility. “He’s switched sides before.”

“No,” Claire repeated, shaking her head vehemently. “No. It can’t be true. He’s… No, Matt you must have misunderstood. She must have tricked…”

“He killed Audrey.”

Matt was looking right into her eyes as he said it, but she could hardly believed it was him. She didn’t want to. The look in his eyes. The sound of his voice. It was so… it was so dead. It was so unlike him, so different from the person she knew.

And she knew Matt; Claire knew Matt better than anyone else. She’d seen him at his best and at his worst, but nothing had prepared her for this moment; for this tone and for this look. It wasn’t something she’d ever expected to see. Not from him.

“No,” Mohinder said loudly, breaking the moment between them. “No,” he repeated, louder this time. “She can’t… He couldn’t have. No, Matt. No!”

“She showed me,” Matt said quietly, turning his eyes away from Claire and back to the floor.

“She showed you Audrey?” Nathan questioned as gently as he could.

“No,” Matt said, his voice still flat. “She showed me the memory. She pulled it from his head. From Franco. She showed me that and…”

“She could have made it up,” Nathan offered quickly. “That’s what she does.”

“No, it’s not,” Matt argued, finally showing a bit of life. “That’s not how Jenny works. She can’t make up memories, she can only access them. Use them to make you see what you don’t want to, but she can’t change the memory itself. Not yet at least.”

Nathan gave a quick glance out the window. They’d be taking off soon, he could tell. They needed to finish up this conversation quick. There was no telling if they’d get a chance to talk like this again.

“Park-- Matt,” he said, leaning in as close as he could given their confines, “you can’t be sure. Unless you’ve seen her for yourself, you can’t be. You shouldn’t just take her word for anything. She’s full of lies. You said it yourself, ‘not yet’. Maybe she can manipulate…”

“I’m not just taking her word,” Matt said, meeting Nathan’s eyes with his own. “I’m taking Franco’s.”

Nathan straightened up and nodded gravely.

Mohinder merely shook his head and turned to stare out the window again, deeper in shock than before.

Claire was on the verge of saying something, but before she could the door rattled open again.

“Everyone ready?” Jenny asked, moving back as two guards stepped into her place.

“I’m coming in,” the guard nearest them said, the one that wasn’t armed. “I’m going to buckle everyone in and that’s it. I don’t want any funny business, alright?”

No one answered him, which he took to mean that they complied.

It was done in a few minutes, the man clearly uneasy and not wishing to linger with them any longer than he had to.

“All secure, ma’am,” he said to Jenny as he hopped back out of the helicopter.

“Good,” she said with a nod. “You’re flying this one?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Then let’s go,” she snapped, climbing into the passengers seat up front.

Nathan swung his head around as soon as the door shut on them again. The helicopter they were in was smaller than the others spread out in the streets. It looked modified and clearly had only one purpose, to transport prisoners. He imagined it still had guns of some sort, but there were no gunners on the side like the rest of the helicopters had. All in all, it looked as if they’d be flying back in a group of seven.

“Where are we going?” Mohinder asked as soon as they were off the ground.

He had to practically yell out his question, the noise was so great.

“The capital,” Nathan hollered. “At least, I think that’s where.”

Mohinder nodded, staring back out the window again and realizing that of course no one really knew. Jenny wouldn’t tell them. She’d prefer to make them wait.

Matt was sitting up again, not really looking at or seeing anything.

Claire watched him for a long moment before catching Nathan’s eye. He was also looking at Matt, apparently worried; it was hard to tell with Nathan sometimes.

She started to speak again when Matt clutched her hands in his. His eyes no longer looked lifeless; they looked terrified.

“What?” Claire asked quickly, straining to see what had caused such a reaction.

Nathan craned his body around so that he too could take a look, but all he could see out the pilot’s window was the two helicopters in front of them.

“What?” Claire repeated, louder this time than before.

“It fell.”

“Fell? What fell?” Nathan asked, turning now to look out and down the window to his immediate left. “What are you…”

Nathan’s voice died in his throat as their helicopter banked a hard right, giving him an excellent view of the ground and of the helicopter Matt had seen fall now in a burning heap on the street below.

“Is it… is it Sylar?” Mohinder asked, his attention fully caught as he strained to see anything significant out his own window.

“It can’t be,” Claire said.

The helicopter banked left his time, sending the four of them sliding in their seats.

“Oh, God,” Mohinder cried out.

They all turned and looked as the helicopter that had been next to them began to spin uncontrollably; spiraling faster and faster in a dive, ultimately hitting a nearby building and bursting into flames.

“It has to be Sylar,” Mohinder said. “No one else… no one else can do that.”

Their helicopter jerked again to the right, circling back toward whatever it was causing the problems.

“Why are they going back?” Claire asked, growing frantic. “Why are they going back?”

“They want to catch him,” Matt said, turning back toward his window.

There was a burst of gunfire from the helicopter just to their left, followed by several more. The convoy only had five helicopters left, but all of them seemed to be locking in on one single building.

They’d found their target.

Near as he could tell amid the confusion, the helicopter that had first opened fire was the next to be dropped. Just like the first one, the main rotor just stopped dead and there was nothing anyone could do about it.

Claire turned as much as she could in her seat, still holding tight to Matt’s hands, and tried to see for herself what was happening out of his window. Mohinder had leaned in toward Nathan, also trying to get a look at whatever it was happening.

There was more gunfire, more jolts, until finally they were close enough to the building in question to see that there was someone on the roof.

“Is it him?” Mohinder asked, still unable to see much of anything.

“No,” Nathan said so quietly that it was almost went unheard.

He looked across the cabin at Matt wanting confirmation of what he’d witnessed. The look he received in return was all he needed.

Micah.

The convoy, now only four strong, drew closer, and there was no mistaking it anymore. Micah was the one on that roof, bringing down helicopters as if he was swatting flies.

They opened fire again and Matt turned away, afraid of seeing what would happen if they didn’t miss.

But they did because the next thing he knew there was the now familiar whine of an engine being overworked and one more helicopter began to doing loops and spins Matt never thought possible of that type of machine.

Claire and Mohinder still didn’t know. They couldn’t get close enough to look for themselves, the angle too steep and their seatbelts too firm. Matt didn’t want to tell them, and it appeared that neither did Nathan.

Amazingly, they swung lower.

Jenny was apparently either angry or intrigued, that could be the only explanation. She didn’t care how many of her people died in the attempt, only that she got what she wanted.

Now they were so close, that on the next pass, Matt and Nathan were practically eye level with Micah.

Claire gasped as she recognized Micah, shaking her head in a convulsive manner. Mohinder said nothing, only sat back against his own chair, refusing to watch any longer.

But that was it.

Not only could they see him, Micah could see them.

As soon as Micah made eye contact, as slight and brief as it had been, with first Claire and then Matt, the spell seemed broken.

Micah looked around him as though not certain how or why he was there and then made a break for it.

“Run,” Claire said under her breath. “Run.”

A few more burst of gunfire and then they were turning again.

“Did he…”

“He made it,” Nathan told Mohinder, sighing heavily and leaning back in his seat.

Claire rested her head on Matt’s shoulder, trying hard to hold back the tears that had spontaneously sprung to her eyes.

Matt dipped his head down low, saying something to Claire that neither Mohinder nor Nathan could make out. Whatever it was, it seemed to do the trick. Claire no longer looked frightened or tearful when she looked up again.

Mohinder couldn’t watch them anymore, it felt like an intrusion, but Nathan couldn’t turn away.

Matt and Claire exchanged a few more looks, looks that obviously conveyed some type of message, but neither of them had spoken. He was beginning to doubt that they needed to.

Nathan watched until Claire gave a slight nod to Matt and then returned her head to his shoulder and shut her eyes, still holding onto his hands.

He watched a moment longer until he realized that Matt was now watching him in return.

Nathan cleared his throat, slightly embarrassed, and then made to look away but Matt shook his head slightly at him and continued to stare back.

Finally Matt turned away, seemingly disgusted, but Nathan could not tell if it was with him or with himself.

For half a minute or more Nathan continued to watch the other man as he stared out the window, oblivious to the scenery that passed before his eyes and obviously in deep thought.

Nathan couldn’t understand what had just happened, or what was happening right now. And maybe he just wanted to believe it, maybe it wasn’t real, but he was quite certain that while Matt had been making eye contact with him just a moment before he had heard something.

Nathan could have sworn he heard a single word, quiet but urgent, whispered to him inside his head using Matt’s voice.

_‘Concentrate.’_  



	25. Resurrection

  
**Chapter 29: Failure**

The fight was getting too intense and D.L. knew he didn’t have a lot of time left to find Ando and bring him to safety. He hurried as fast as he could through the Market and down the steps to the classroom, pausing only once or twice to steady himself against the ever increasing tremors that shook through the building. Hiro and Lauren had told him exactly where Ando was, but getting there hadn’t been easy.

Finally, after moving a few of the desks that had shifted from their original places, D.L. opened the door to the back room and he just knew.

It was too late.

Possibly it was the way he was laying or maybe it was just the overall stillness of the room. Even in the semi-darkness, D.L. could see that Ando wasn’t moving at all, that he wasn’t breathing.

The damage had been too great after all.

Bowing his head D.L. let out a sigh before finally entering the room which had taken on the atmosphere of a tomb. To be certain, he had to be certain, D.L. checked for a pulse, but the lifeless eyes he saw upon closer examination was all the proof he really needed.

The walls around him shook once more.

Deciding immediately that he could not leave Ando here, that he deserved a proper burial, D.L. lifted him up and made for the exit.

Hiro and Lauren, he thought, would never get over it. They’d never stop blaming themselves, even though it was not their fault. But the grieving process might be easier if they at least had a funeral of sorts; a way to say goodbye.

Struggling up the steps, D.L. felt the entire building lurch first to the left and then to the right, and again he knew.

It was coming down.

Racing now through the door, he was just a moment too late. Debris began to fall from the ceiling, crashing down with a vicious intensity that could not be natural. Whether it was Sylar or Peter, D.L. didn’t know or care, he just wanted out.

Phasing himself and Ando through the final obstacles, D.L. made it outside just in time. The sound was deafening and unending. It seemed as if the building had collapsed forever, that the falling of bricks would never end. And even when it finally did, the noise was still intense.

Looking up, D.L. saw why.

The helicopters had returned.

D.L. watched as one, just on the other side of what remained of the Market, the side that his friends would be waiting for him, opened fire.

Not wanting to, but knowing he had no other options, D.L. placed Ando’s body down nearest the next building where he hoped it would go unnoticed. Vowing to come back, D.L. took off to help Hiro and Lauren if he could, but before he even rounded the corner on his way back to them the helicopter overhead was joined by a second one that swung a spotlight on him.

D.L. tried to phase and quickly realized he could not; they were using inhibitors.

Faster than he’d ever ran before, D.L. turned and took off. He knew he couldn’t outrun a helicopter, but in the very least he could lose them in the nearby buildings and take shelter inside. He didn’t dare phase even after he was out of range. He knew that if they did catch up to him as he was midway through a wall or other object and turned on the inhibitor, at best he’d be stuck. At worst, well, he didn’t want to think about that.

They were right behind him, spotlight still on as they gave chase, when he heard the first burst of gunfire. Evidentially they weren’t aiming to kill because it was an easy shot to make. They might just be trying to round them up. D.L. thought that might be worse. Given the state Matt had been in, death would be preferable.

Dodging in and out of alleyways, without a real destination in mind, D.L. finally ducked inside a building and raced through to the other side and out again.

He kept going in and out of buildings in the same fashion, doubling back a few times just in case, before finally coming to a stop, reasonably certain he was no longer being followed.

Panting, D.L. peaked outside the last building he’d entered and scanned the skies.

They were gone.

They hadn’t wanted him after all, or they hadn’t wanted him badly enough to chase him through Boston. Either way, D.L. was relieved.

Sliding down the wall into a sitting position, he momentarily rested. D.L. knew what he had to do next, that he had to go back and look for the others. That he had to go back and bury Ando.

And most importantly, he had to go back and find his wife and son.

Hoping against hope that these helicopters were only over the Market, and nowhere else.

****

From the moment that Sylar had been sent sailing into the Market he’d had his next move planned. Having a plan is what made him and Peter so different. Sylar always had one, was always thinking two or three steps ahead, whereas Peter rushed into things without thinking.

It was the feeling part of him, Sylar reasoned as he got to his feet and waited. Peter Petrelli relied too much on his own emotions and on his own impulses. He wasn’t rational and he wasn’t calculating.

He didn’t deserve the power he had.

Sylar did.

Sylar knew that he would be better suited to Peter’s gift than Peter was himself. He’d know how to use it better, more effectively, and with far less emotion. Emotion was a weakness that should be cut from the body.

And because Peter let his emotions rule him, Sylar knew he’d come after him.

He knew that Peter would be so overcome that he’d have to come after him. Peter would want to finish this once and for all because he loved. He loved his friends and family and he was afraid for them. Rightfully afraid of what Sylar would do next.

So filled with emotion that he walked right into a trap.

As soon as Peter landed inside the building, Sylar set it in motion.

Sylar shook the foundation of the Market with all of his might, catching Peter completely off guard and even knocking him off of his feet. It didn’t take very long to bring the building down, not considering all of the damage it had recently suffered from their battle earlier, but it was immensely satisfying.

Knowing what was to happen it was easy to keep from being hurt. Sylar simply willed the bricks to fall somewhere else and he remained completely untouched.

Peter wasn’t as fortunate.

Piles of rubble fell onto him, burying him completely and finally stopping Sylar’s prey in place.

“You should have known better, Peter,” Sylar taunted as he approached where he knew the other man lay. “You should have known that I would win in the end. I’m better than you are because --”

Before he could finish the debris surrounding Peter burst apart giving Sylar only seconds to deflect it.

Peter stood there, completely unscathed, glaring at Sylar with nothing but pure hate.

“This isn’t over,” he said, lifting himself out of the mess and into the only open area left across from Sylar. “You haven’t won anything yet.”

Sylar took a menacing step forward and…

Nothing happened.

Confused, Sylar tried again. He tried again to send something, anything at Petrelli, but to no avail.

Peter looked confused as well. He’d been set to defend himself and found that not only was there no reason, but there was no way to do so.

They both realized at nearly the same moment that something was seriously wrong.

Peter looked up first; he was the first to spot the object in the sky hanging over them almost like death itself.

He turned quickly to Sylar, who was also now staring up at the helicopter in the sky. The warning, the ludicrous cry to ‘run’ was almost out of his mouth as he heard a ‘pop’ issued from above and watched as Sylar crumbled to the ground.

Peter was rooted to the spot in disbelief. After all of this, after all the years of fighting and fear, this was the end?

Looking back up again at the helicopter, he heard the noise once more and knew that he was too late to do anything to protect himself. That he hadn’t even tried to run.

But there was no blood.

There was no blood and little pain, just a stinging sensation in his neck.

Moving his hand instinctively to the spot, Peter felt for the object that had struck him and pulled it out in one swift movement.

The dart fell from his hand before he’d even had a chance to get a good look at it, having done its job very effectively.

Dropping first to his knees and then backwards with a dull thud, the last thing Peter saw was that damn helicopter circling lower and lower.

His last thoughts were that he’d failed.

****

Hiro and Lauren hadn’t gone very far from the Market, but had waited. They waited until they were quite sure the helicopters had gone. They had no choice. Without their powers they weren’t much good. They couldn’t fight it by themselves, their only advantage taken away.

It was hours before they came back to examine the rubble that remained of the Market. They’d crept back cautiously, but the city seemed devoid of life. There were no sounds in the air or on the street, like they were all that was left.

When they arrived there was relief. They were not alone after all. Standing amid the ruins was D.L., seemingly shifting aside as much as he could but looking as lost as they felt.

However, when he saw them, he smiled.

“I thought they might have taken you both,” he said as soon as they were near enough to hear him.

“We were lucky,” Hiro conceded, still unhappy with himself for leaving at all.

“There was no choice,” Lauren said as if reading her mentor’s thoughts. “We had to run or else…”

“Me too,” D.L. said with a nod of agreement and understanding.

For a long moment no one spoke and only D.L. continued to work.

“Is…” Lauren started, looking around in the hopes of finding someone else nearby searching as well. “Did you…”

Her voice cracked, afraid now that D.L. was still looking for Ando. That he’d been too late and that the building had fallen in on him as she’d feared.

D.L. caught her meaning at once. He looked first at her and then to Hiro before shaking his head and dropping his gaze.

“I’m sorry,” he said softly. “It was too late. I got there too late, he was already gone. I’m… I’m sorry.”

Hiro bowed his head at a complete loss for words as Lauren turned and took several steps away from both of them.

When Hiro did finally speak, his voice was full of loss.

“Where should we look for him?”

“No,” D.L. said quickly, understanding what he meant at once. “I didn’t… No, he’s not here. I got him out, I couldn’t leave him. I wouldn’t. I left him over there. I had to hide not long after we escaped but, I left him…”

D.L. realized he was babbling and pointed quickly to what both Hiro and Lauren had missed before. Not far away, under a tree, was the clear outline of a body covered by a blanket.

Hiro nodded once more at D.L. and then left to see his friend once more to say goodbye.

Lauren hung back, knowing that Hiro needed that first moment alone. That as much as she loved Ando, Hiro had the first claim to grief, having been friends with him all of their lives.

She could only watch Hiro for a moment as he bent near the body before turning back to D.L. who had resumed his search.

“If you aren’t looking for Ando then…”

“Peter,” D.L. said softly, still moving as much of the bricks as he could. “Peter was here last and… I don’t know. I don’t know if they took him or if he’s still here.”

Lauren cast her eyes about now as well, hoping to see any sign of life around them.

“I’ve phased through the larger piles,” said D.L., sounding hopeless. “So far, nothing. Sure could use Franco right about now. He’d just have to take a peak and then…”

“Franco and Audrey haven’t come back yet?” Lauren asked.

“No one has come back,” D.L. said is such a way as she knew that they were the least of his worries.

They worked together in silence for several minutes before Hiro finally rejoined them.

“We’ll need to find some place proper,” was all he said as he joined them, still looking toward the ground.

“I was thinking the Common,” D.L. answered. “Nice of a spot as any around here.”

Hiro nodded briskly as Lauren hastily wiped her eyes.

After nearly a half hour more of digging they were forced into the realization that the Market was empty. Neither Peter nor Sylar were left behind.

“Now what do we do?” Lauren asked, shifting nervously and casting a sidelong glance to where Ando still lay. “Should we…”

“I think --”

Hiro was cut short by the sound of an engine in the distance.

None of them moved. Tired of running, they’d each decided separately that they had rather face whatever danger must be approaching than to try and avoid it again. Running had cost them too much that night.

“Sounds like a car,” said Lauren, alert and straining to see where the vehicle would come from.

“It is,” D.L. concurred, thinking it must be one of them. The Order and Primatech had both been using helicopters. Someone else must have survived.

“There it is,” Hiro pointed at the truck coming down the street. “It looks like…”

“Micah,” D.L. interrupted, sounding beyond relieved. “It’s Micah!”

D.L. ran forward to greet his son, a smile on his face and tears in his eyes. The waiting and worrying had been awful, but it was finally over.

Hiro and Lauren trailed after him at a discreet distance; happy as well that the young man had made it, but unable to portray the emotion as properly as they should given the other losses they’d sustained.

Micah hopped out of the truck and hugged his father, tears streaming down his face; he was practically shaking from fatigue.

“Dad,” Micah just managed, choking out the words. “Dad, I…”

“Thank God you’re alright,” D.L. said again and again, barely giving him enough room to breathe.

“Dad,” Micah said, this time more forcefully. “Mom… Mom didn’t… She’s…”

D.L.’s face went from absolute joy to absolute dread in a split second.

“There wasn’t anything I could do,” Micah said, tears still falling as he looked him in the eyes and shook his head. “I’m sorry. I tried. I tried to stop them but it wasn’t soon enough. I’m so sorry. I’m so…”

D.L. struggled momentarily to pull himself together before he pulled his son back into a hug.

“It wasn’t your fault,” he said quietly. “I know you did everything you could. I know you’d have done anything for your mom. It’s alright. It’ll be alright.”

“Micah,” said Hiro gently, “I’m very sorry.”

Much as his father had done, Micah seemed to gather his strength and compose his feelings as best he could before looking over and giving Hiro a quick nod of thanks.

“I brought her back with me,” Micah said with forced toughness, determined to cry no more, as he indicated the back of the truck. “I didn’t want to leave her there, not when… The whole colony. It’s gone. They killed everyone.”

“Primatech did?” D.L. asked, clearly confused. He’d been under the impression Primatech was capturing, not killing.

“No,” Micah answered. “It was the Order. It was Jenny Yi. I saw her. I… I saw her in one of the helicopters,” purposely omitting his part in bringing several down. “She’s taken Claire, Matt, Mohinder and Nathan with her.”

“Taking them south I’d guess,” D.L. added.

“Do you think she has Peter as well?” asked Lauren.

“No,” D.L. said firmly. “Those second ones, Franco had said they weren’t from the Order. We’d seen them earlier. They were definitely different.”

“We’ll discuss it all later,” Hiro said, forestalling the question on everyone’s mind. “Right now we have things to do here. Friends and family to look after. Franco and Audrey are still missing and… and Nikki and Ando should be given proper burials.”

“Ando?” Micah asked, his face falling momentarily back into grief from the shock of it.

No one answered him, no one really could, but Micah understood. It was too soon to talk about it. About any of it. It was how he felt about his mother.

Instead, D.L. and Micah got into the truck and drove it over to where Ando’s body lay. Gently as they could they placed him in the back next to an already covered Nikki. During that time Lauren had gone back to their former living quarters and returned with a few shovels from the storage room.

Hiro had not moved.

“Are you coming?” D.L. asked him as Lauren slid into the spot beside Micah.

“I’ll be there soon,” Hiro assured him. “I’m going to first head to City Hall. See if maybe anyone else is left. If Audrey or Franco… We need to be certain before we decide what to do next. We can’t leave anyone else behind.”

“Do you want me to go with you?” asked Lauren.

“No,” Hiro answered. “I’ll do this alone. I need to do this alone.”

“If we don’t see you soon,” D.L. began, but Hiro shook his head quickly.

“You will see me soon.”

With one last earnest look, they were off leaving Hiro to go his own way, if only for awhile.  


  
**Chapter 30: Fight**

Hiro wasn’t far from City Hall when he noticed the blood on the ground. The trail began as large puddle, out nearly in the open, that led off toward an alleyway between two of the buildings.

There was so much blood that Hiro assumed that the person, whoever it was, had been moved in an effort to hide the crime.

But why?

If Primatech or the Order had killed someone would they care if it was seen? Would they even bother? It was fairly obvious now that no one was supposed to be left in the city. Why go through the trouble to hide one body?

Cautiously, he followed the trail, hoping that maybe the person had survived, but not overly optimistic given the sheer volume of blood he’d found.

Stopping as the blood continued off into an open doorway, Hiro wasn’t sure he wanted to continue on. Finally a half-stifled moan of pain drove him forward. Whoever it was they were hurt and he should help them. He wasn’t going to run any longer, not from what he knew was the right thing to do.

Pushing open the door, he found her.

Audrey gazed up at him from where she sat, leaned up against the opposite wall, her eyes glossy but still alive.

“I didn’t think anyone was coming,” she said weakly, coughing hard at the end.

“What happened?” Hiro asked, hurrying to her side and trying to take a look at the wound she was guarding fiercely with an arm pulled tight across her stomach.

“Franco,” she practically spat out, her face contorting in pain. The effort of speaking was clearly too much, but she continued on. “He’s working for her. For the Order. He’s been spying on you all.”

“He shot you?” Hiro asked, unable to help himself. “He did this and…”

“I made it inside,” Audrey finished for him, gasping for breath between sentences. “It’s not too bad. It doesn’t hurt as much as it did.”

Hiro wanted to believe her, but couldn’t. Audrey was pale and shaking, and it seemed as if willpower alone was keeping her alive.

“I was hoping someone would come,” she continued, still taking in huge, ragged breaths after every other word. “I needed to tell someone… I tried to tell Peter but there wasn’t enough time. There was never enough time…”

“It’s alright,” Hiro lied. “You can tell me now. Just take it easy, Audrey. Don’t…”

“I will,” she interrupted. “I’ll relax when I’m done, but you have to know. You need to know the truth. It’s so much clearer now than it was. I’ve had a lot of time to think and work it out, sitting here.”

She stopped and coughed, harder this time than the last; blood trickling out of the corner of her mouth.

“Project Genesis,” Audrey said, looking Hiro firmly in the eyes. “It all comes back to that. They started it. Primatech did, but they couldn’t control it. This was never meant to happen. It was supposed to be a controlled experiment. They were looking…”

Audrey stopped once more to gather what little strength she had left.

“They were looking for a specific power. They were triggering dormant ones in search of it, but it got out of control. There are massive files on it. Tons of data. I didn’t see everything…”

“They made us?” Hiro asked, confused at the thought. His power was so much a part of him, so natural to him, that it seemed a contradictory statement.

“Not made,” Audrey answered slowly. “Triggered. It’s important you understand. Not made. They can’t make a power. And they can’t control what they don’t make.”

“Okay,” Hiro said quickly, her agitated state beginning to worry him.

“They triggered people who were never meant… Matt was right,” Audrey said, trailing off and looking down. “He’d told me that they did this to him, long ago, and I didn’t believe him. But he was right.”

“Audrey,” Hiro said as gently as he could, prodding her forward; sensing her time was short.

“They wanted to harvest the powers they’d triggered,” she went on after a lengthy pause. “I don’t know why. It wasn’t all there. But the one power they’d kept looking for, they couldn’t find. The one power that would make them invincible.”

“Claire.”

“Claire,” Audrey repeated with a sigh. “This won’t end until they find her. They’re convinced she’s the key to it all. The key to eternal life. They want her more than anything and… and they’re willing to kill all of you to get to her.”

Hiro knew she was done. Audrey, as soon as she’d finished her last warning, visibly relaxed and stared up at the ceiling as if waiting for something more.

“Audrey,” Hiro said, nearly frantic. “Don’t. You can make it. You can. You’ve made it this long.”

“I had to tell someone,” she said, her voice sounding far weaker than before as she continued to stare up into nothing. “I had to set it right.”

“Audrey,” said Hiro once more, trying not to panic at the thought of losing another friend that night.

“Tell Matt,” Audrey began, her voice now no more than a whisper, “that it was quick. And painless. Tell him that and… and…”

Audrey looked at him with a weak smile as a few tears slid down her cheeks, before finally her eyes simply rolled back and she took one last breath.

****

Claire was the only one of the four who didn’t appear completely exhausted by the time they’d landed back in what was once Washington, D.C. The flight had been very long and it didn’t look as if they were going to get to rest any time soon.

They had landed at the White House, which despite the times looked completely unchanged, and were immediately separated from one another. No one protested, no one but Claire had the energy to; they all assumed they’d be seeing one another soon enough.

Matt was the worst off. The gaps and memory loss was always worse when he hadn’t slept properly. That and, despite feeling cold, he was certain he was running a fever; still sick with whatever he’d caught on the way up to Boston.

He was only half aware of what was going on around him, only becoming fully conscious of the events after they’d shaved his head and made him shower.

Next it was a series of questions about his life, complete with lie detector, half of which Matt didn’t even bother to respond to it was so ridiculous. Then they drew blood. A doctor or nurse, probably not a real one, asked more questions, these about his general health, and again Matt just kind of laughed and shrugged them off.

It was so completely ridiculous.

This wasn’t why Jenny brought them here, he was sure of it. She didn’t care about their health or their lives. She liked to cause pain. It made so little sense that Matt was beginning to question whether or not it was really even happening at all. That maybe, just maybe, Jenny was pulling a major mind bender on him and he was so messed up from whatever Primatech had done to him that he couldn’t even tell.

Finally, left alone for nearly a half hour in a small room that could have possibly doubled as an office at one time, the first real sign that he wasn’t having a massive hallucination came through the door.

Claire.

She smiled feebly at him, tears in her eyes, and Matt swore under his breath upon seeing her so miserable.

They’d shaved her head too.

She sat down next to him, still handcuffed the same way he was and tried to wipe her eyes the best she could.

“It’s only hair, right?” she joked. “It’ll grow back.”

“Yours will,” Matt returned. “You never know at my age.”

Claire laughed loudly, catching even herself off guard, before bursting into tears and leaning her head onto his shoulder.

“It’s going to be fine,” he said quietly. “It is, Claire. We’re still together. We’re going to make it through this. I promise.”

Claire sat up straight again, looking him in the eyes and nodding fervently in agreement.

“Sorry,” she said, wiping her cheek against her shoulder. “Sorry. It’s just stress. I was worried about you. I know how she is with you and…”

Claire stopped cold as the door opened again, this time bringing in Mohinder.

“Oh, good,” he said taking in both of their appearances. “It’s not just me.”

Claire smiled at him and shrugged good-naturedly.

“What else did they do to you two?” Mohinder asked, leaning in closer as if afraid they were being eavesdropped on.

“Shower, change of clothes, bunch of random questions about my family,” Claire rattled off. “Oh and some fake doctor tried to take blood from me but had to give up after twelve attempts.”

“They got me in one,” Matt said with a laugh.

“Same with me,” Mohinder added, smiling as well.

“What do you think she wants from us?” asked Claire, serious now.

“Well, she wants me dead,” Nathan answered as he entered the room. “Not much of a surprise, most people do.”

Nathan, like the others, had also been deprived of his hair, but seemed to be taking it well.

“Did you answer any of their questions?” he asked the three of them.

All of them shook their heads in the negative making Nathan smile.

“Good,” he said. “Excellent. But I don’t think our hostess will be too happy with our noncompliance.”

“No,” Jenny said, startling them all as she now entered the room along with two of her men, “I’m not. Not at all. But we have plenty of time to talk. Loads of it, actually.”

She glared at each of them in turn as if daring them to speak up now that she was among them.

Nathan was the first who did dare.

“So, are we allowed to ask questions now? Are you going to tell us why you dragged us here?”

“Mr. Petrelli,” Jenny said, her voice dripping sarcasm, “I’ve brought you home. I thought you’d be grateful. I’m so sorry if your reception here wasn’t filled with all the pomp and circumstance befitting a ruler returning from exile, but I did my best, I assure you.”

“No, no,” Nathan said, sounding almost as if he was the one still giving the orders. “The reception was most kind. Although, I usually prepare my guests dinner and show them their rooms, not force examinations on them and shave their heads. But you and I have always had different styles.”

“The examinations were precautionary,” she returned coolly, not giving an inch. “As were the unfortunate haircuts. We’ve had problems with lice and scabies over the past few months. Anyone new introduced to the compound gets their head shaved. It wasn’t meant as a punishment.”

Nathan nodded but didn’t believe it.

“And?” he asked.

“And what?” she repeated.

“Why are we here?” Mohinder asked having grown inpatient with all of this nonsense.

“I’d thought that would be obvious.”

“It isn’t,” Matt said flatly.

Again she gave them each hard, scrutinizing looks before finally letting out a sharp, shrill laugh.

“You honestly don’t know, do you?”

“No,” Nathan said harshly. “We don’t. We honestly don’t.”

“My God,” Jenny continued to laugh. “That little colony of your must have been really secluded.”

“Not secluded enough if you ask me,” Mohinder returned coldly.

“But you,” Jenny said, turning to Matt and ignoring Mohinder completely, “you must have known. You must have at least a small clue as to why…”

“Tell us if you’re going to,” Matt interrupted.

The smile died slowly on Jenny’s face as she nodded crisply at him.

“Primatech is looking to end their little project,” she said after a lengthy pause. “They’re looking to end us all.”

Claire looked at Matt, clearly confused. Matt didn’t know what to say. He still didn’t know what Jenny was talking about. Mohinder also appeared to be at a loss over the supposed impact Jenny had expected from this statement.

“They can’t.”

The three turned as one toward Nathan whose expression clearly showed shock.

“They are,” Jenny replied. “Trust me, they are.”

“And they don’t know that you… that you plan…” Nathan continued to stammer. “What are you planning?”

“I’m planning to fight,” she said fiercely.

“And we’re supposed to help you?” Matt asked.

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Why?” she laughed. “Why? You ask me why. You of all people. You really don’t remember, do you? They said you wouldn’t, but they say a lot of things. Most of it lies. Primatech breeds lies; it’s their way of protecting the truth.”

“I still don’t know…”

“You’re patient zero.”

Matt looked at Claire, who seemed just as lost as he did, before turning first to Mohinder and then to Nathan. Both men looked slightly fearful.

“What does that mean? What are you talking about?” he asked, again turning back to Jenny for an explanation.

“It means that our termination starts with you,” Nathan supplied instead. “There was a disease, a virus, Primatech had been working on for a number of years. Many, many years before any of this. It was meant to end their experiment should things get too far out of control.”

“What experiment?” Claire asked, still not understanding what was going on.

“Us,” Nathan said in a hollow voice. “We’re the experiment.”

“You knew this,” Matt said, unable to keep the bitterness out of his voice. “You knew about all of this and you never said anything?”

“I didn’t know until well after,” said Nathan, trying to defend himself the best he could and knowing he was not succeeding. “Not until after everything had already happened. Not until… I didn’t think it mattered anymore. The virus had been tested several times and failed. I thought they’d given up. I thought we were safe from them and from it.”

“They never gave up,” Jenny confirmed quietly. “It’s gone too far now and they want it over.”

“Well, yes,” Nathan said dryly, “obviously they still do. But the virus. They never got it working. It never spread the way they wanted it to. How? How did they…”

Nathan cast a nervous glance toward Matt, almost as if he was afraid of him.

“They found one of us with a special power. She’s almost like Claire here, in reverse. Instead of healing, she kills. Pheromones, I think. Sends them out and infects the target. She’s very accurate. They were able to duplicate her power and infect Matt just before sending him back up to the colony.”

“Then it’s too late,” Nathan said.

“No it’s not.”

“If he was infected and it’s airborne than we’d all have it by now,” Nathan argued.

“But you don’t,” Jenny returned. “You’ve been tested. None of you have it. Not even Matt anymore.”

“But…” Nathan stammered, unsure what to say next.

“They weren’t aiming to kill this time,” Jenny provided. “They were merely testing something, or rather, someone.”

Mohinder perked up, having caught on to her meaning.

“They knew,” he said simply.

“Of course they did,” Jenny said, giving him a small smile. “They knew that if Matt was really sick…”

“Claire would cure him,” Nathan finished.

“So, they gave me some fatal virus just to see if Claire could cure it?” Matt asked, shaking his head slowly in disbelief.

“Yes,” Jenny responded.

“And there’s nothing else that works.”

“That’s right.”

“So, if she hadn’t been able to stop it or kill it or whatever it she does…”

“You’d be dead,” Jenny finished for him. “Or, on your way to dead. Not really sure how long it takes.”

“And Nathan?”

“Infected and on his way to dead,” Jenny answered.

“But Mohinder?”

“Immune. It only affects us.”

“So it failed,” Matt finished lamely.

“It was a successful failure,” Jenny conceded. “They know now that Claire can combat the virus; it just gives them another reason to want to find her. Isolate her from the population and try again.”

“You didn’t know this until now,” Mohinder added. “You didn’t know if what Claire did worked, did you?”

“No,” Jenny admitted, “but I was willing to take the risk.”

“I still don’t understand,” Claire said after a long pause. “I get that you’re trying to stop Primatech from killing us all, but I don’t understand why. And I still don’t know exactly what you want from us. What are we supposed to do?”

“Don’t worry,” Jenny said, smiling once more. “You’ll know soon enough.”

****

The sun was well into the sky as they’d finished burying their three friends, their three family members. They’d chosen a nice spot near the lake, but after it was done, no one knew what to say. There simply weren’t enough words to convey the loss they all felt.

D.L. was the first to turn away, unable to stare any longer at the spot where his wife was now at rest. He got several yards away before he realized he was not alone, that Hiro had joined him.

“We need to act,” he said quietly. “Quickly. If what Audrey said was true…”

“They messed with her head, just like they did Matt’s,” D.L. argued. “For all we know, they planted that. They wanted us to think…”

“Why? Why would they want us to think that? The colony was never a threat to them. Not really. The only reason to come here was to destroy us and to find Claire.”

“Then it’s over either way,” D.L. continued sounding defeated. “You heard Micah. Jenny’s got her. She’s got Claire. Whatever they’ve planned, it’s done.”

“Jenny Yi is not Primatech,” Hiro said forcefully. “And it is not over. Not as long as we still fight.”

“Fight? Hiro, look around you,” D.L. sighed. “There aren’t enough of us left to fight.”

“We can’t just… we can’t give up,” said Hiro, determined not to give an inch. “Not after we’ve gone this far. After it’s cost us so much.”

D.L. lowered his head and looked toward his son who was still standing with Lauren next to the freshly dug graves.

“If Jenny has Claire…”

“Listen to me,” and Hiro with great animation. “Last night, two things were happening at once. Primatech was here and the Order was here, but they were not working together. Had they been, we’d all be dead or dragged off. If what Audrey said was true, then it would make sense that Jenny Yi would want out of the arrangement with Primatech. She would want to save herself.”

“And by capturing Claire she’d at least assure herself a bargaining chip,” D.L. concluded, finally understanding Hiro’s point.

“Exactly.”

“But,” D.L. said, as something else dawned on him as well, “what about Peter? If Primatech took him, if they took Sylar, wouldn’t that be nearly the same as having Claire? Peter can duplicate her power. He can duplicate any power.”

Hiro nodded slowly, almost sadly, before finally finishing.

“That is why we have to go to Primatech. That is why we must try and fight while we still can.”

****

Waking was a struggle and it took several attempts before he could actually open his eyes. Even once they were open, only part of the way, he couldn’t really see. The lights, flying by overhead, were so bright that nothing was distinct.

Not only could he see nothing, he couldn’t move either.

It suddenly occurred to him that he was strapped to some type of gurney; strapped so securely in place that even his breathing was constricted.

And still, Peter had no idea where he was.

Finally whoever it was doing the steering stopped.

“He’s awake,” Peter heard a man’s voice say from not too far away.

“Doesn’t matter,” another man answered.

“But what if he…”

“He’s not going to do nothing,” the second man interrupted harshly, laughing at the fear in the first man’s voice. “Not with that necklace on. He’s harmless.”

“Then why do we keep drugging him up?”

Peter felt a sudden cool sensation float up his arm, only then aware he must be attached to an IV.

“Doctor’s orders,” the second man laughed as Peter drifted back off to sleep.

It could have been hours or days, Peter wasn’t sure, but the next time he woke up he was alone in what appeared to be a hospital room.

Still strapped in place, Peter craned his neck from side to side, trying to take in as much of the room as he could. There were IV stands, monitors, carts full of supplies and even a defibrillator, but it still felt off. It was only on his third look around did Peter notice the camera trained on him and the fact that the room was completely windowless. Even worse in his opinion, Peter realized that he couldn’t see the door from where he lay.

He struggled momentarily against his bonds, but to no avail. Finally Peter tried to summon a power, any power, although nothing he could bring to mind could possible help him at the moment.

Not that it mattered.

No matter what he tried, it didn’t work.

That man had been right after all, even if Peter didn’t fully understand what he’d meant; he was harmless.

After a few more minutes spent in fruitless struggle, Peter heard the door to his room click open.

“Hello,” Peter struggled to say, his voice weak from lack of use. “Who’s there?”

“Mr. Petrelli,” a new voice said, stepping closer but still out of sight. “Glad to see you are awake. We’ve been expecting you back for some time now.”

The voice sounded vaguely familiar, but Peter could not put a face to it.

“I’ll admit, you weren’t our first choice, but you’ll do.”

“Who are you?” Peter asked, still struggling to see his questioner. “What am I doing here?”

“You don’t recognize my voice?” the man asked. “Well, of course you might not. It’s been years. Many, many years.”

“I…”

Peter’s voice died in his throat as the man behind the voice finally stepped into view.

“Your parents would be disappointed in you, not recognizing me,” he continued. “I am, after all, an old friend of the family.”

“That’s not true.”

“It is, I assure you. Very true, whatever it is you choose to believe. Even parents have their secrets.”

Peter didn’t want to hear this.

“I still imagine you think Nathan is innocent in this. That he’s been my dupe, my cover. Your faith in people has always been extraordinary, Peter. Truly remarkable. I used to believe, like your father, that it made you weak. But I’ve seen the error of my ways.”

Peter shook his head harshly, turning away and refusing to look or listen any more.

“Yes, Peter,” he continued, un-affronted by Peter’s actions. “I was mistaken in you, just as I was mistaken in Nathan. Natural mistake given, well, given a lot of things. But no more. Now, now we are finally getting somewhere.”

Despite himself Peter turned and looked, disturbed by the unexplainable joy in the other man’s tone.

“Peter,” whispered Mr. Linderman as he leaned in closer, a perverse smile on his face. “You and I. We’re going to change the world.”


End file.
